A Fleeting Moment
by VampireQueenAkasha
Summary: One moment can make you question your entire perspective on things - Mention of Rose Bedford - A ClaireXWesker pairing. Sort of. Does contain strong language.
1. Prologue

**A Fleeting Moment**

**Disclaimer**: Welcome one and all to my first ever...*NAH-NAH-NAH*...CLAIRE AND WESKER PAIRING! This will be a M only for the violent scenes and language. Maybe some romance if you stick around and review. Hehehe. No, there will be, I promise you that. The title came from listening to Nightwish's song "Nemo". I dunno. After hearing the lyrics and thinking about it, I came up with this pairing for the first time. It is brief and in all honesty, was because I lost the magic for it.

_"Not one or two, Subhuti, not one or two, but all the beings - men, women, animals, birds, trees, rocks. All the beings in the world. One should create such a determination that `I will lead all of them into nirvana'."_

-Buddha

_"'Tis strange what a man may do, and a woman yet think him an angel."_

-William Makepeace Thackeray

**By: VampireQueenAkasha**

_"There's no point in hiding."_

-Wesker, Resident Evil 5

**Prologue**

_I, Ozwell E. Spencer, founder of Umbrella as well as its chief executive officer, hereby proclaim myself as rules of all mankind. Everyone shall prostrate themselves before me as they once did for the ancient false gods._

_At least, that was what my destiny should have been._

_But I did not become a god; I could not sever my ties to my own weak humanity._

_Instead my body is being destroyed by this damned disease, the disease of age. It has carved wrinkles in my face like a well-weathered canyon, and my arms are like the thin withered branches of a dying tree. Age has even deprived me of the use of my legs._

_The only chance I'll ever have of becoming a god and shaping humanity's destiny, is to stop this disease from continuing to ravage my body._

_I believe there's a saying about realizing the joys of life when one is at death's doorstep._

_Sayings like that are for the weak who are going to die. They attempt to mask their feats with pithy aphorisms. Mortals can't comprehend what life means for those who death is not a concern. The ignorant are fond of making generalizations to include those who would not be party to their pedantic musings._

_I will undo this unjust travesty done to me by time, and I will present myself as the perfect being that will rule over all mankind._

_I will give them a new set of commandments to govern their lives._

_All that remains is to find the key to immortal life!_

_The virus manufactured by Umbrella is that key. It suppresses telomere shortening which negates the function that limits cell division. Somewhere in that process is the key to immortality. If the process could be perfected, that key would be mine._

_I have the means available to me. I can realize my ambitions, thanks to Alex._

_I lost much in human capital following Umbrella's bankruptcy, but I still have Alex, the best and brightest of them all, and the last of my children._

_I have faith that if anyone can find a cure for the ailment of time that keeps me from assuming my role as the head of mankind, it is Alex._

_Alex will find a way._

It rained a lot these days.

Spencer found everything to be trivial if it included the ways of the human world; so weak and pathetic. Sitting alone in his office certainly didn't make things easier on his old nerves, even the pattering of rain did nothing to soothe him either. Just being locked away in here bothered him beyond measure. It was like waiting for his age to catch up to him and kill him. Things were just going far too slow for him to bear.

He shifted in his chair, focusing attention on the elevator that signaled the approach of someone. The doors roared open and William Birkin stepped out carrying a few folders in his hand. They were reports that Spencer had requested on the new virus that he was in the middle of developing. Spencer was fascinated with this new knowledge because he hoped that it would benefit him and his rise to a better tomorrow for himself and the entire world.

"William, good to see you," Spencer said, his voice bursting out of him like a powerful wind, "Ah! You have what I requested." William placed the folders in front of him and he opened them up for study; information on Lisa Trevor. "I trust that things are going quite well, then?"

"Yes, we've extracted all that we need from her bloodstream," William answered, "I have already begun work on the next project. She will be disposed of upon your request."

"Good, then we can move on," Spencer grasped his cane leaning against his desk and pushed himself to his feet.

"There is just...one problem..." William seemed reluctant to say it also.

Spencer glanced up at him, his eyes glittering in a strange show of warning. Spencer didn't like problems, especially when they involved his mansion, projects or anything having to do with his employees. "Problem?"

William shifted on his feet. "Lisa Trevor has become impervious to almost every physical attack we try to throw at her. She's...almost too powerful to simply throw away, sir. She could serve some kind of use to us, I imagine."

Spencer didn't seem amused nor eager to accept the idea. "How so?"

"Well, think about it," William suggested, watching as Spencer looked thoughtful for a moment, "Albert wants to run his tests at the facility using his...guinea pigs to do so. She could soften them up a bit, test the waters and see what these guys can handle. It would be great for my research. Lisa will be kept under wraps inside the facility, she doesn't seem to want to leave it anyway. So it could work out for all of us."

Spencer murmured thoughtfully before he nodded his head once. That could work to his advantage. "Very well."

William was relieved. Having Lisa keeping tabs on the STARS members would no doubt make it easier on him to continue his research without being disturbed. After all, things were starting to look up for his G-virus; he wasn't going to let anyone stand in the way of that. Not even Spencer would dare. William wanted this virus for himself and no others. As long as Spencer had no need to suspect him, he would be fine.

_Keep the old man happy_... he reminded himself.

"Inform Albert that I want a progress report by next month," Spencer told the scientist, "We can't afford to waste any more time with the incidents at the Arklay mansion. The United States Government will eventually sniff out our plans."

William nodded before he departed into the elevator. Spencer waited until he was completely gone before taking a spot at his desk and he slowly began to dial a number in the computer system. On a large screen nearest his desk, an image lit up revealing the letters AW in perfect cursive. The face behind the voice speaking was altered so much, it became nearly impossible for any man to tell if it was a male or female. But Spencer knew.

_"You called, sir?"_ the voice said, in a low, deep purr.

Spencer leaned back in his chair. _"How are things going out there, Alex?"_ he asked, "Do you have results for me regarding the Bedford girl?"

_"You'll be pleased to hear that all experiments are running smoothly. We've had an increase in our success rate from 17 percent to 20 percent."_ the voice responded, _"Expect a progress report within three days."_

Spencer gritted his teeth and clenched his fist. Too slow. It was all moving too slow. "Can't you work any faster?"

A chuckle. _"Sir, these thins take time and effort. It is a very delicate procedure that requires patience, funding and proper planning."_ A small pause. _"But not to worry. Everything is going well, I assure you. I have been informed by the New Genesis Director that things are also moving rather nicely on his end." _There was a moment of silence and Spencer took that time to clear his head a bit before the voice spoke again. _"How is Albert doing these days? I certainly want to meet him again very soon. It's been so lonely associating with individuals whom I cannot associate with on my level. It's become rather boring, actually."_

"Alex, Albert must not know just yet," Spencer said, "Don't worry, my friend. Eventually, he will."

_"Hehe. I am not worried for Albert's sake. I understand that he has become quite the master of his craft. It would truly be a blessing if he were to become my equal."_ A moment's pause. _"Forgive me, but Science marches on. I must go."_

Spencer smiled. "Farewell, my friend."

_"Farewell..."_

Spencer closed his eyes and leaned back, taking a deep inhale.

Hopefully, things would work out for the better. The New World that he planned would finally come into fruition and he would take his spot as the God that he deserved to be. With Alex's help, he could accomplish this.

O

_Note_-I mentioned Rose from my Resident Evil: Code Genesis fanfiction. No Wesker/Claire interaction yet, but soon.


	2. 1

**A Fleeting Moment  
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**Disclaimer**: Welcome one and all to my first ever...*NAH-NAH-NAH*...CLAIRE AND WESKER PAIRING! This will be a M only for the violent scenes and language. Maybe some romance if you stick around and review. Hehehe. No, there will be, I promise you that. The title came from listening to Nightwish's song "Nemo". I dunno. After hearing the lyrics and thinking about it, I came up with this pairing for the first time. It is brief and in all honesty, was because I lost the magic for it.

_"Not one or two, Subhuti, not one or two, but all the beings - men, women, animals, birds, trees, rocks. All the beings in the world. One should create such a determination that `I will lead all of them into nirvana'."_

-Buddha

_"'Tis strange what a man may do, and a woman yet think him an angel."_

-William Makepeace Thackeray

**By: VampireQueenAkasha**

_"There's no point in hiding."_

-Wesker, Resident Evil 5

**Chapter One: Just Met**

_Raccoon City_

The entire S.T.A.R.S. team were playing poker inside the break room while sharing some beers and chips. The only one not accounted for was Wesker, who remained in his office to file paperwork and gather evidence together for his report. He seemed particularly annoyed with the antics of his team, but wasn't interested in even chastising them because he had more important things to worry about. Besides, it was a slow night and if they wanted to spend it playing a harmless game of cards, he saw nothing really wrong with that.

"Okay, I got two pairs!" Barry declared, revealing his hand and slowly starting to scoop the chips up to his side, "Read 'em and weep, ladies!"

Jill slapped her cards down and grabbed his hand. "Not so fast," she said, grinning, "Those girls are pretty, but they're no match for my ladies here." She revealed her hand to them; a straight flush.

The men groaned and shook their heads in disbelief.

"I don't believe it!" Forest protested.

Enrico leaned back, nonplussed, "Don't see why," he said, "She's won every hand so far."

Jill scooped up the chips and smirked at them all. "I almost feel guilty."

"No, you don't." Rebecca joked.

"Yeah, you're right!"

Both women slapped each other high fives. Kenneth looked disgusted with the display and glared at Chris. He was somewhat drunk in his words, so everyone knew that they meant little coming out of his mouth.

"Why did you invite this girl to our games, man?" he snapped, "She's a fucking ringer, man." He slapped his cards down. "This is horse shit." He stood up and everyone began laughing at his display. He pointed down at Joseph. "You, you're a fucking asshole to tell me to come here so I can get handled. You wipe that grin off your face. Shit..." He gathered his jacket and fitted it onto his back. "Well, fuck you people, and fuck you, you and you...fuck and kiss my big brown fucking ass, okay?" Finally, he passed out onto the floor, lying there in a pool of his own saliva and snoring.

Everyone laughed loudly.

"I love that guy." Barry joked, chuckling and shaking his head.

Chris glanced down at his watch and sighed. "Oh man, I have to get home," he said, standing, "If I don't Wesker's gonna be all over my ass about getting my reports finished before tomorrow." He fitted his jacket on. "I'll see you guys tomorrow, alright?"

"Aww, come on, Chris!" Brad protested, "We didn't even see your hand!"

Chris smiled and waved him off, moving toward the door, "It's not that good; I'll see ya' later!" He disappeared into the hall.

Brad peered at Chris' folded hand and sighed skeptically, glancing at the others. "That asshole had a royal flush..."

"I should probably get home too," Rebecca stood up, "I have to feed my cats." The others made goofy jeers and sneers at her making cat noises and she laughed skeptically. "Shut up. Shut up!"

Jill looked at the remaining people at the table. "Okay, do you guys wanna do something different this year?"

"What do you mean?" Richard asked.

"It's Chris' birthday tomorrow, dude!" Brad snapped, elbowing him in the ribs.

"Oh yeah!"

Jill gave them both skeptical frowns before she continued. "I was thinking of bringing him in a cake. Since he doesn't like too many people over at his house-"

"That's cuz he lives in a pigsty." Joseph interrupted from the corner of his mouth.

"Anyway," Jill continued, humorlessly glaring at him from that remark, "I was thinking that it would be cool if we could have a little get together at J's Bar. We can all surprise him there by texting him to meet up later tomorrow. His sister's going to be down too."

"Sounds like a plan," Barry said, smiling.

Joseph held up two hands. "Okay, okay," he said, interrupting them all, "Who's buying the drinks?"

Barry grinned. "Whoever has the worst hand!"

"Go!" they all cried.

They slapped their cards down and looked them over before Brad sighed and rolled his eyes when he saw the results were not in his favor at all. He stood up and picked up his jacket. "I'll get my checkbook."

_Later_

Claire Redfield walked into the R.P.D. building late that evening carrying something in a tight plastic container. She was wearing long black skin pants and her red biker's jacket that had a logo on the back spelling out "LET ME LIVE".

Marvin Branagh was standing in the R.P.D. lobby when he saw Claire approach. "Hey, can I help you, miss?" he asked.

"Yeah, I was bringing in something for my brother, Chris," she told him, holding out the container for his verification. She watched him study the thing before smiling pleasantly. "It's his birthday tomorrow. So I thought I'd bring him something."

"I can't let you go back there without proper identification," Marvin told her, gently, "It's protocol, you understand."

Wesker was just stepping out from behind a door when he noticed the slight altercation between the two. He tilted his head curiously at the sight of the strange girl standing there. He had never seen her before.

"Look, I'm Claire Redfield, Chris' sister!" Claire protested, "I'm sure he's spoken of me."

Wesker walked up to them. "Is there a problem here, Marvin?" he asked, giving the man a look.

"No, sir," Marvin answered, glancing back at Claire briefly, "She claims that she is Chris Redfield's sister and she's here to give him something for his birthday, but I've never seen her before here. I'm not trying to be critical or denying what she is saying, but I've told her that she can't see him without Chief Iron's approval."

Wesker nodded once before looking down at Claire. "You just missed him, I'm afraid," he told her, "He left a few hours ago for home."

Claire sighed with frustration and shook her head. "Great, I drive four hours to get here and I just miss him..."

Wesker arched a brow. "Why would you do that just to give him...eh..." He stared down at the container. "Whatever it is that you have there."

Claire smiled sheepishly. "I made his favorite food; chicken and dumplings," she said, opening the container to show both men, "It's an old Redfield tradition; one makes dinner for the other."

Wesker smiled, almost amused by the silly, insignificant gesture. He could only imagine if she lived even further out across the country. Would she have still done the same thing for him then? She was a Redfield, so that was a possibility. In knowing Chris, he was a persistent and very dedicated individual to his own needs and cause. She seemed to be exactly the same way. "I see."

Claire sighed with frustration before looking up at Wesker and holding it out to him. "You want it?"

Wesker shook his head and held out one hand, despite the fact that he was somewhat hungry after working all day on paperwork and having eaten nothing since breakfast. "Oh no, I couldn't possibly..."

"It's okay," Claire told him, chuckling softly, "It's not like I'm not a bad cook or anything and I made too much to save for leftovers. Take it."

It did smell very good. Wesker reached out after a moment's hesitation and took the container. He gave Claire a polite smile. "Thank you." He turned to go before looking back at her, his face a mask of deep thought-even with the sunglasses-before he spoke. "Perhaps you will join me?"

Claire gave a small smile. It would be nice to get some update on Chris to see how he was doing. "Okay."

Wesker and Claire sat across from one another with the container of food in between them. Wesker was eating it slowly and pushed a fork to Claire's side. She gave him an amused smile and took the fork, reaching in to eat some food with him.

"Chris speaks very highly of you, Miss Redfield," Wesker told her, "I'm surprised that I have never met you before."

"Well, I've been spending most of my time in college," she answered, between bites, "Chris and I agreed to go about our own ways as long as we kept some kind of contact between each other should we come across an emergency."

"Hm." Wesker took another bite.

Claire chewed some more before she continued. "So what are the guys doing this year about Chris' birthday?" she asked, smiling, "I hope they don't try to order a Russian Mail Order bride like last year."

Wesker chuckled quietly. Ah, he could remember that one. "As far as I know, they plan on celebrating at J's Bar."

"Cool." Claire stood up. "Well, nice to meet you, Mister..." She held out her hand and paused, unsure of his name.

Wesker smiled at her and shook hands. His grip was strong and incredibly warm in hers. "Just call me Wesker. Albert Wesker."

Claire smiled back and nodded with respect before she turned and walked out into the hallway where her cellphone rang. She stared down at the ID: CHRIS. Sighing, with amusement, she flipped it open and brought it to her ear.

"Hey Chris, I'm in town," she said. Wesker listened in curiously on her conversation with his subordinate. "...Yeah, I ran into your boss...Yeah." A chuckle. "Chris, that's not a nice thing to say... No, he seems like a pretty nice guy to me... No, he didn't try to search me. I gave him the dumplings I was gonna give to you..." An amused laugh and Wesker could guess that Chris was upset with that. "Aww, now relax, I got more at the hotel... Yeah, with a lot of garlic salt this time, I promise. Okay, I'll see you later... Okay, I promise, I love you. Bye." Wesker stood up when he was sure that she hung up and walked out to the hallway.

"Excuse me, Miss Redfield, I just remembered something important that I was meaning to tell you," he said.

Claire smiled at him. "What's that?"

"Stay away from the forest."

Claire's smile fell. "Why?"

"We have uncovered several bodies up there," he informed her, "Our team has come up with an idea that there's a local cult performing the murders and havn't caught anyone just yet. So keep your distance."

Claire nodded once. "Uh, sure."

Wesker watched her go and a smile lit his face, but one that wasn't particularly friendly.

_Kendo's Gun Shop_

Barry peered through an Automatic Rifle scope and Robert Kendo watched him from behind the countertop, smiling with pride at his latest creation. His small radio was playing Eric Clapton's song "Motherless Child." Barry furrowed his brow down at the weapon in his hands before gesturing to the hammer of the gun. Kendo leaned forward to see just what was the problem that Barry was pointing at.

"The lock's jammed. There's grass in the focus lens, did you check this? You have to check it." He blew some of the grass out. "Come on, Kendo, don't go get cheap on me, man."

Kendo grimaced apologetically. "Sorry. I was up all night with the kids," he told him, moving around the countertop to get something. "They wanted me to play basketball with them outback and I ended up getting side-tracked." He sniffed and put his hands on his hips. "I was so sure that I checked it before bringing it in." He gestured for the weapon. "I'll check it right now and fix it up- you want me to clean it out?"

Barry smiled. "Hey, not unless I wanna shoot things with a damn blind fold on."

Kendo smiled and brought the weapon to a table behind the counter. The small set of bells on the front door jingled and Barry turned, seeing Claire walking in. He looked surprised to see her after all of these years.

"Hey, Claire, long time no see!" he greeted, putting his arms around her in a hug, "How ya' been?"

Claire smiled at him when they parted. "Hiya, Barry."

"So you in town for Chris, huh?" Barry looked over amused at Kendo as he started singing with the song playing on his radio.

"Yeah. I met up with your boss today."

Barry faked a grimace and pretended to look piteous for the younger girl. "Oooh, sorry to hear that." He laughed then. "Nah, Wesker's a good guy. He's just got a whole lot on his plate right now like the rest of us. Hopefully he comes to the bar tomorrow night."

"Barry!" Kendo stood up and offered the man a small box. "I almost forgot that I finished your weapon."

Barry started to open the box before he paused and stared at the man skeptically. "I'm not gonna find a spider in the barrel, am I?"

When Kendo gave him a look, Barry opened the box and lying inside was a .44 Magnum "Colt Anaconda". It was somewhat larger than the Python, with an identical design re-sized for the .44 Magnum round. Barry grinned and picked the weapon up, stroking the barrel with delight.

Claire chuckled. "I'll leave you two alone. I gotta head home."

"See ya' later!" Barry called after her.

Claire walked outside to her motorcycle before a deep roll of thunder stopped her. She glanced up and sighed with disgust, throwing her hands in the air as rain began to pour down, drenching her entire body.

"Great!" she snapped, "That's just great!"

She reached to take her helmet when the rain surprisingly stopped dropping onto her. Surprised, Claire noticed that the rain hadn't stopped, but someone had shielded her; she looked up at a dark blue S.T.A.R.S. umbrella hovering over her head. Glancing over her shoulder, she noticed that Wesker was standing there, sunglasses and all. He was out of uniform and was wearing a dark blue jacket and large black boots.

"Hello again," he said.

Claire wiped her mouth with one hand before chuckling with embarrassment. "Hi."

"Come. I will walk you to your hotel." Wesker held the umbrella over her head in one arm while he pushed her motorcycle with the other.

"That's really not necessary," Claire said, not entirely sure that she liked having someone helping her like this, but she didn't want to be rude either. "My hotel's not too far, just around the corner and up the next street, I can just walk it myself. It's just a little rain."

"Yeah, but a lot can kill you," Wesker replied, as if his comment wasn't even a big deal, but it made her arch her brows.

"Why do you want to go out of your way to do that?" Claire asked. Her tone almost seemed skeptical to him, like she didn't believe the idea that someone would just help a drenched woman for no reason in the dark in a big city like this.

"Where I am going isn't far from here either," Wesker answered, "Consider it a public service. It's what I do." That wasn't entirely a lie, nor was it the whole truth either.

Claire didn't argue further because he was already moving with her bike. She stayed beneath the umbrella and they walked in silence before arriving at the hotel. Wesker placed her bike into a proper spot before watching her shake herself dry beneath the canopy. She gave Wesker a smile, but still seemed doubtful by his act of kindness.

"Thanks." she said.

He nodded once in respect, but said nothing.

"I guess I'll see you at the bar?" Claire said.

"Perhaps." Wesker turned and walked away, leaving her standing there and watching as he disappeared around the corner.

Claire stood there for a few moments before disappearing inside. From a reasonable distance, Wesker watched her and turned, walking toward the large towering Umbrella Headquarters. He entered the well-organized, sterile building filled with staff-members, men in lab coats and security officers. A few acknowledged him with a "hello" and a "Mr. Wesker" and he returned acknowledgement with a brief, curt nod to them. He stepped into an elevator and with a loud, hydraulic humming sound, it began to sink down.

He descended into a lower floor which was just as well organized and staffed. There were various rooms where doctors and scientists were working on experiments. He passed a coat rack and took one of the white coats, fitting it onto his back. He entered one of the lab stations where William was standing, scrolling something down on a clipboard. The man looked up and smiled at the sight of Wesker entering the room.

"Hey, we were wondering when you'd show up," he said.

"Well, I'm here," Wesker replied, curtly, "So what's the status so far?"

William snapped his fingers and a bagged corpse was rolled into the room by an assistant. "I brought you a present," he told the man, "It's nice and crispy. Still warm, too."

Two more scientists entered the room and one unzipped the bag, revealing a burned, oozing body of what looked like a man in the first stages of mutation. Wesker grimaced somewhat before he pulled out a pair of rubber gloves from a wall housing and fitted them to his hands.

"Jesus, that stinks!" one of the men said.

Wesker gave him a look at his less-that-professional analysis before he turned back to the corpse, peeling back the gums and revealing a set of fresh, sharp teeth that had started to grow in replace of the flat, human ones. The throat was tattered beyond compare and his nails looked like long, yellow claws. The flesh was no doubt burned due to the doctors having to terminate it. Possibly because of a failed experiment gone wrong.

"You haven't started in on the internal organs, have you?" Wesker asked one of the scientists.

"No. Not yet. Just the blood sample from the cranial stems."

There was a moment's pause before Wesker looked at William. "What's the story on this one?"

"They claim that he was still screaming when they burned his body," William continued, fitting rubber gloves onto his hands, "See the markings around his throat? It appears that they were self-inflicted. He tried to kill himself before the mutation set in."

Wesker curled his nose. "Pretty."

After gathering a sample, Wesker studied the blood beneath his microscope, watching the bright pink blood intermingled with some small blue platelets and the sickly orange-red T-cells that ran rampant and wild. William watched him while he worked on taking down numbers in his computer system.

"Subject AL-5533UC: Failed. Terminated on spot." He gave Wesker an amused smile. "Will your unit be prepared to face this?"

"There is no doubt in my mind," Wesker replied, "They have trained long and hard. It will certainly be quite the treat to see how they will fair." He paused for a moment. "And how is my other project going? Will it be ready soon?"

William smiled and nodded. "Sure. Sure. Not a problem." He chuckled quietly. "I've heard that you plan on going to a bar with them tomorrow. That sounds like quite a bit of fun if you ask me. Too much fun for someone like you to bear."

Wesker removed his glasses, and began rubbing the bridge of his nose. He sounded exasperated in his next words. "William, it's three in the morning. I'm really not in the mood for one of your terrible jokes right now."

"Not to worry about that, it isn't a joke," William answered, "You have to keep them in the dark for now, give them no reason to suspect a thing. If they do, then they could expose us for sure. Just be careful."

Wesker chuckled softly. "Not to worry. I always am."

O

_Note_ - Reviews are awesome. Whatddya think? :D


	3. 2

**A Fleeting Moment**

**Disclaimer**: Welcome one and all to my first ever...*NAH-NAH-NAH*...CLAIRE AND WESKER PAIRING! This will be a M only for the violent scenes and language. Maybe some romance if you stick around and review. Hehehe. No, there will be, I promise you that. The title came from listening to Nightwish's song "Nemo". I dunno. After hearing the lyrics and thinking about it, I came up with this pairing for the first time. It is brief and in all honesty, was because I lost the magic for it.

_"Not one or two, Subhuti, not one or two, but all the beings - men, women, animals, birds, trees, rocks. All the beings in the world. One should create such a determination that `I will lead all of them into nirvana'."_

-Buddha

_"'Tis strange what a man may do, and a woman yet think him an angel."_

-William Makepeace Thackeray

**By: VampireQueenAkasha**

_"There's no point in hiding."_

-Wesker, Resident Evil 5

**Chapter Two: A Fleeting Moment**

_Raccoon City_

A S.T.A.R.S armored vehicle rolled down the streets of Raccoon City carrying the Alpha team inside. They were armed with rifles, body armor and helmets all save for Chris. He was going to go in disguised in a ratted jacket, sunglasses and ripped jeans; he would pose as a potential buyer for the criminal's interests while everyone else moved in. Barry was sound asleep during the ride and Joseph occasionally tapped his nose once, causing the sleeping man to mumble and rub it sleepily. He snickered and shook his head. Wesker was standing up inside the vehicle and he had a monitor screen displaying a map of Raccoon City to his underlings.

"Whaddya think they want this guy for anyway?" Brad asked, sidelong to Jill.

"Don't know, don't care. We don't question orders, we execute 'em to the fullest extent, you know that." she answered.

Wesker gestured to the monitor. "Our target is Fernando Gutierrez, former Umbrella staff member of the Mexican branch," he told them, "He's jumped the fence a few years back and we've been tracking him ever since. Intel indicates that he's holed up at his penthouse; it's been reported that he plans to sell Umbrella equipment illegally on the Black Market. Our job is to secure the site and take him into custody."

"And if he resists?" Chris asked.

Wesker looked down at him and spoke gravely, as if Chris should have know exactly what should be done about the criminal. They couldn't be lenient with dangerous people and Wesker knew that this man could be dangerous. "You know what must be done."

The vehicle pulled up in front of a derelict motel and the S.T.A.R.S. agents piled out. Wesker turned to Chris and handed him his weapon. Chris took it and nodded at his captain in acknowledgement before slipping the gun in his belt and covering it with his t-shirt.

"Be careful, Redfield," Wesker told him. He turned and sighed, speaking laconically. "And will someone _please_ wake up Barry?"

Joseph smirked down at Jill as she readied her handgun in place. Even in her masculine attire, her short hair did nothing to add to her femininity whatsoever. "Hey, Valentine," he teased, "Have you ever been mistaken for a man?"

She arched a brow. "No. Have you?"

The other guys laughed at the joke; Wesker seemed nonplussed by it. Jill looked at him now, watching Chris move carefully to the apartment complex across the street, with casual grace and all the arrogance that a punk would have.

"Wesker, what is so important about this guy?" she asked, "He's doing more than just selling marketed Umbrella stuff, isn't he?"

Wesker didn't like it when people asked him questions, particularly ones that regarded his own orders. He didn't really care whether or not the S.T.A.R.S. members of his team followed his orders to the letter because he had bigger, much better plans for his future that did not involve them, but if any one of them so much as got wise to his plans or the situation, they could end up giving him a problem with it.

"Like I said...I do not know... and to be quite frank, I do not care. He is a high-value target and we've been tasked to bring her in by Chief Irons, so that is exactly what we're going to do. I want this by the book and no screw ups, do you understand?"

"Got it."

Joseph was watching Chris through his rifle scope and he looked at Wesker. "Chief, he's at the door right now."

Chris knocked on the front door of room 221. A male, Hispanic accent answered angrily from behind it. "...Who is it?"

"It's Joey, man!" Chris answered, faking a name and a tough-guy accent as well, "Open up!"

After a few moments of waiting and listening to the sounds of locks unlatching and switching, the front door opened and there stood a middle-aged man of Hispanic descent, wearing a messy brow jacket and white tank top and blue jeans. He scrutinized Chris for a long time, trying to figure out if he had even met this man anywhere before. Chris read the wariness in his eyes and played everything cool while the other S.T.A.R.S. members listened in through a small headset in his ear.

"We talked over the phone, dude," he said.

Wesker nodded his approval. Chris was doing well.

The man, Fernando sighed and shook his head, obviously relaxing. Chris could see a few liquor bottles lining the entire table and floor behind the man as he walked over to fetch something in a box. "Yeah... yeah... you're two hours late."

Chris chuckled and shook his head. "I know, it's the old lady's fault."

Fernando smiled and walked up with the box. When Chris reached for it, he pulled away slightly. "You got the money?" he asked.

Chris reached into his pocket and pulled out a wad of marked bills. "Two grand right here, my friend." When the man handed him the box, he grinned and patted his shoulder. "Hallelujah. You're my savior, man. My own personal Jesus."

Fernando scowled now and gestured to the box. "Now, if you get caught using that..."

"Yeah, I know. This never happened, you don't exist." Chris said, chuckling.

Fernando suddenly squinted at Chris' ear and his eyes slowly widened when he saw the piece of metal there, almost as plain as day. He staggered back with a shout and reached beneath his boot for a weapon he had. "_¡hijo de puta!_ (Son of a bitch!)."

Chris moved just as fast, drawing his handgun and firing a round right at the man's hand. The bullet ripped right through, sending blood shooting through the air. The man screamed out in pain before he ran as fast as he could back into his apartment. Chris touched the headset in his ear.

"Wesker, he's on the run!" he shouted.

Wesker sighed angrily. "Dammit!" He turned and grabbed something in the vehicle wrapped in a long, rectangular box before sprinting off.

Fernando jumped from the window of his first floor apartment and started to hop the fence, but Chris was already there behind him, gun aimed. "Freeze, S.T.A.R.S. Put your hands on your head!" he ordered, "Do it. Do it right now."

But Fernando refused; he grabbed the fence, jumped over it and took off toward the motel across the street toward a parking lot filled with potential vehicles for him to steal. He was running full out with his hand gushing blood everywhere when around the corner of the building ahead of him, Wesker emerged, carrying the wrapped parcel in one hand. He smirked once at the man and removed a massive double-barrel shotgun from the box.

Fernando, transfixed by terror, only stood there for a few moments before turning to run back the way he had come, but that was exactly what Wesker needed. He expressionlessly strode his way forward and cocked the gun before firing. Fernando screamed out as he took a hit directly in one of his legs, shattering the bone and toppling him into the cold, pavement. He screamed again, writhing in his own blood. The sounds of sirens filled the air and Wesker loomed over the man, smiling coldly down at him.

"No more running again, Mr. Gutierrez..." he hissed. He tapped his headset once. "Clear."

The remaining S.T.A.R.S. members moved in and stared down at the bloody mess on the ground. "Oh my God," Jill gasped, horrified. She tapped her headset to signal out Rebecca. "Rebecca, I need you here fast!"

_"On my way!"_ came the response.

Chris looked at Wesker. "Why did you shoot him?" he asked.

"He was going to run away."

"But shoot him like that?"

Wesker looked at him sternly now. "He possessed a deadly weapon and I wasn't about to let him shoot me, Chris," he snapped, gesturing down at the groaning man, "This man is a criminal and very well would have shot you had you not shot his hand." He paused for a moment, watching Chris' expressions of doubt before he scoffed in disbelief. "Don't show any remorse with criminals like this one, Chris. They're all the same."

"Either way, we have to get him to the hospital." Jill said, as Rebecca pulled up on her S.T.A.R.S. motorcycle, "He's going to bleed to death and we won't get any information out of him if he's dead. I'll check the apartment and apprehend anything he might have with the intentions of selling."

"Good work, you do that," Wesker told her, nodding, "In the meantime, Rebecca and I will take our leave to the hospital. The rest of you may go."

Barry frowned at him. "And do what?" he asked.

Wesker smiled and whispered sidelong to him. "You have a party to get to at J's bar, don't you, Barry?"

The man suddenly grinned and nodded. "Oh yeah."

While Rebecca and Wesker dragged the man back to the armored vehicle, Wesker glowered down at him and knew that more steps would have to be taken in order to get information from him. He knew that this man had more going on than just petty thievery. He could take him to Umbrella and "secure" the problem that Spencer had ordered of him. All his team needed to know was that Chief Irons had made the call and he had secured the lie well.

Later that evening, Fernando was sitting in a darkened room, life's blood bleeding out through the bandage in his leg. He had multiple bruises on his face and a few cuts. His teeth were dripping of blood and a few were even broken from heavy blows and punches. His jacket had been removed and his tank-top was stained with his own blood, speckled lightly across his chest and pants. They had removed his shoes and the floor felt cold.

"If you cooperate with us, it'll be so much more easier for you, Fernando," came Wesker's voice from somewhere in the darkness, "We know that you were going to sell our plans to your pals in the Black Market. We just want to know who you're working for and what they paid you and you can get out of here Scott Free."

"No..." Fernando groaned, head hanging on his shoulders. He refused to give in; he had his pride to consider and nothing to lose. His wife Sylvia was safe on Mexican grounds and there was no way that Umbrella could get to her.

"We could get the information from someone else if we must." Wesker appeared in the dim glow of the light that hung above Fernando's head. "I have no problem with that at all."

Fernando chuckled dryly, glaring up at him with defiance. "No you can't. You can't touch her..."

Wesker tilted his head. "Really? Are you sure about that?" He reached out and snapped his fingers.

Fernando looked over at a door that creaked open and his eyes widened in horror at the sight of his wife being dragged into the darkened room by two UBCS officers. She struggled weakly, but looked absolutely terrified to be here. She was wearing her blue and white nightgown, which told Fernando that they must have bagged her in the night and left her in a trunk or something since then. He struggled to try and reach her.

"Let her go!" he shouted.

His eyes widened in agony and a sharp gasp escaped his lips when Wesker punched him hard in the abdomen, nearly knocking the wind out of him. Sylvia cried out in horror at the action. Wesker grabbed a fistful of Fernando's hair and brought his face up to meet his emotionless one.

"I don't recall you giving orders around here," he said, in a soft voice of menace. "Now you can save the both of you if you just tell us what we need to know." Fernando mumbled something and Wesker leaned forward. "What did you say to that? I'm having a difficult time hearing you under your breath."

Fernando glowered up at him. "I said...I'm not saying shit," he snapped, defiantly.

Wesker smiled. A small part of him had hoped that Fernando would be this foolish. "I don't want you to say shit, Fernando, I want you to answer me. That's all."

Fernando continued to glare back defiantly.

"Oh. You don't want to say anything about anything you might know?" Wesker crooned, with menace to his voice. "I hope that you change your mind very soon." He stood up and started walking toward Maria. "Otherwise, your wife here is going to have a very bad day."

"Wait!" Fernando begged, jerking in his chair, "Leave her alone, she has nothing to do with this!"

Wesker chuckled down at the frightened Maria. "You're lucky you have such a dedicated husband." He turned, pulled up a chair in front of Fernando and sat down in front of him. He pulled out his knife on his S.T.A.R.S. chest belt and moved it back and forth on the tip of his finger. "Maybe we should get to know each other a little better." He tilted his head to one side after a moment's silence. "Tell me, do you do drugs at all?"

A shake 'no'.

"What about selling? Do you sell anything for drug money?"

Another shake 'no'.

"Alright. And what were you planning on doing with the programs?"

Fernando hesitated.

Wesker stopped twirling the blade and his smile disappeared. "Answer my question, please."

"No."

Wesker sighed and stood up, drawing out his pistol before moving toward Maria. She started to scream when the UBCS officer released her and Wesker grabbed her by the back of her neck in a tight grip. Fernando wailed and struggled wildly.

"NO! Don't!" he shouted.

Wesker smiled, unfazed by the woman's screaming of terror and Fernando's rising tears. It never hurt him to see people suffer if it meant getting what he needed and wanted. Spencer had ordered that they take any means to ensure that the information remained secret and that the criminals were taken care of. "Your wife is about to have a bad day today, Fernando," he told him, "You can save her simply by talking. It doesn't have to be this way."

Fernando opened his mouth, but Wesker had already squeezed the trigger, pumping a round right in Maria's stomach. She uttered a quick grunt, eyes wide and glazed over. Blood gushed down the length of her nightgown. The UBCS soldier grimaced at the sight of her crumbling to the floor and Fernando wailing bitterly and with pain. Wesker caught the look and frowned at him sternly. He didn't care what a lesser dog felt about this.

"Is there a problem?" he snapped.

The soldier shook his head.

"Good. Then get out of here." Wesker gestured to the door and the soldier walked out.

"You fucking piece of shit!" Fernando screamed, tears streaking down his face, "You shit! Shit! No, Maria... My Maria..."

Wesker chuckled and shrugged his shoulders the words rolling right off of them. "That's okay. That's okay." he said, "Because between you and me, I couldn't care less if she bled all over the floor and died, but you do. You can save her if you just tell me what I want to know."

Fernando groaned with anguish, unable to say anything. All he did was sob uncontrollably and tremble. Wesker shook his head with pity.

"Such a waste..." he said.

Later, Wesker emerged from the room, wiping his hands with a blood-stained cloth. William was standing there, a look of shock on his face. Wesker glanced back impassively and shrugged his shoulders.

"His connection was a man named Tate, hiding out somewhere in Raccoon City's docks," he told the scientist, "We'll find him." He glanced over his shoulder before looking back at William again. "Oh, and bring someone up to clean up the mess in there."

_Later_

J's Bar was packed with people that evening who came to relax after work and just to have fun. The S.T.A.R.S. team members were there, gathered together at the bar, eagerly waiting for Chris to arrive. They knew that he had no idea what was going on and figured that it was just another night out for them after a hard day's work.

Rebecca suddenly ran into the bar, giggling. "His car just pulled up!" she announced.

Everyone eagerly waited until Chris stepped through the door and they all shocked him by uttering a loud 'surprise'. He grinned and threw his arms up to his head, embarrassed, stepping back outside. Everyone laughed, hollering out 'get back in here' and he stepped inside again.

"Ah, shit." he said, smiling, "You guys..."

They gathered around him, giving him hugs, noogies and a few kisses on his cheeks for good measure. Wesker stayed out of the grouping, drinking his bottle of beer at the bar. He stared skeptically at the scene and shook his head.

"What would you do without them?"

Wesker looked to the side and noticed that Claire had joined him. He arched his brows. "We meet again, Miss. Redfield."

Claire chuckled softly. "Yeah. Good to see you showed up."

"Why wouldn't I?"

"I dunno," Claire said, smiling, "You seem like a...uh..." She pondered the right word before answering. "A fun-less kind of guy."

Wesker had brought the bottle to his lips and stopped halfway to stare at her skeptically. "I don't believe that fun-less is even a word, Miss. Redfield."

Claire giggled softly and shook her head. He didn't even see the amusement in words like that. She glanced over her shoulder, noticing that Barry was making a toast to Chris. The others joined in, raising their glasses of liquor in the air.

"To Chris Redfield...the finest soldier, the finest undercover cop and the finest man I've ever known." he said.

Chris smiled and patted his shoulder. "What am I gonna do without you?"

Barry took a drink from his glass and smirked at Chris. "Get a girlfriend." he teased.

Chris just gave him a playful shove.

The group spent hours at the bar, eating chicken wings, sharing stories and playing games. Brad was actually passed out at the table, surrounded by various empty bottles. Everyone stared down at him and Joseph was drawing something on his forehead and face. Jill rolled her eyes at the childishness.

"Joseph, what are you doing?" she asked.

Joseph pulled away, revealing a message he had scrawled on the man. It read "Blowhole" with a small arrow pointing directly at his mouth. Wesker raised a brow, nonplussed. "Oh now isn't that just charming, Joseph..." he said, skeptically.

Claire stood up and placed her glass down. "We'll I'm going to have to head back. I need an early start tomorrow if I'm going to head back to the campus in time."

Chris sighed and stared up at her gently. "Claire, I don't know why you booked a hotel," he said, "You know you're always more than welcome to stay with me at my place."

"Chris, a germ couldn't survive in your place!" Rebecca chided.

Chris glared at her. "Shut up!"

Claire didn't like burdening her brother that way. They weren't kids anymore. It felt weird just staying at his house, despite the fact that she was only in town for a short time. It was just how she was. She didn't like taking hand-outs from anyone, not even her brother.

"It's okay, Chris," she said, fitting her jacket on, "It wasn't much anyway. It'll be good."

Wesker stood up as well and began to gather his jacket in one arm. "I should go too," he replied, "I have to finish filing reports by morning." He gestured to the unconscious Brad and scowled slightly at Joseph. "I do not care if he's hungover tomorrow morning. Make sure he's at the office."

Joseph gave him a two-fingered salute. "You got it, chief."

Wesker turned and nearly collided with Claire. She uttered a quick apology and stepped to the side to get around him, but he stepped exactly in her way and they attempted it again before Wesker finally gave up and sighed. He gestured for her to go around him. She walked away, but not before giving Chris a quick pet on his shoulder.

"See ya' later, Chris," she told him.

He smiled and waved, watching them go. "See ya'!"

Claire started to go for her motorcycle, but Wesker stopped her. "Do not tell me that you are planning on driving tonight."

She sighed and stared at him skeptically. "I'm not drunk, Wesker. I'm perfectly sober enough to drive my way to the hotel."

"I had one beer and you have had four," he said, sternly, "Just because we are on friendly basis does not mean I will not take you in." He softened slightly and gestured to his parked black Cadillac in the parking lot. "I can drive you to your hotel."

Claire shrugged her shoulders. She didn't want to spend a night in jail. "Okay."

Wesker walked to his car, unlocked the passenger door and opened it for her. She slid inside onto cool black leather and fitted her belt across her chest, watching Wesker come around and enter the driver's seat. He put his seat belt on and finally started the car. Warm, comforting, gentle air immediately blasted from the vents and Claire made a quick murmur of content.

Wesker gave her a smile. "Lovely, isn't it?"

Claire nodded as he pulled out of the lot. "You sure do like black, huh?"

Wesker didn't reply, just stared at the road ahead. The passing lights occasionally cast a gentle glow across his angular cheekbones. Claire really couldn't understand why he was wearing those glasses at night all the time. How could he even see? Maybe that was just a style and he had the best damn vision there was. He didn't seem to be very amused either, his lips always scowling like he was totally pissed off at the world. Hm. Well, that was no surprise for a cop. Most of them always seemed that way.

"Hey, do you mind if we listen to some music?" Claire asked, wanting to break the weird silence.

"Not at all." He bent and switched the radio on. It was the news.

"And now for a special news update: the bizarre murders in our city continue to escalate. Words have just come in that a group of friends camping in the forest have been killed. No details have been made yet, but there have been rumors that-"

Wesker quickly changed the channel and gave Claire a small smile. "Perhaps something a bit more upbeat..."

She smiled back, despite the concern welling up in her chest regarding the murders.

Wesker continued fingering with the dials before he came to a song that he seemed satisfied with. Claire recognized it as Foreigner's, _"I Want to Know What Love Is". _It was a lovely song and she used to listen to it all the time when she was a kid.

"Do you like this kind of music?" Claire asked, smiling.

He shrugged his shoulders. "I suppose."

"I do," Claire said, staring ahead, "It reminds me of my mother."

Wesker sensed something in her tone that made him glance down. "What happened to her?"

"It was cold, wet and on a highway..." Claire seemed to be droning down into an almost hypnotic state. "We had to stay with our grandmother. She wasn't the nicest person either." Claire chuckled softly, trying to make light of the situation even though she looked pained. "Chris and I used to hide from her and grandpa when they'd get mad at us. Sometimes we'd wish that our parents were still alive whenever she did stuff to piss us off. That's just how it went for the both of us."

"I'm sorry." Wesker replied.

"It's okay," Claire answered, shaking her head, staring out to the passing street. "We've come along alright, even though we lost our parents. It's been fine." But her voice didn't seem really convincing. She sounded as if it still bothered her to a small extent.

Wesker wasn't too thrilled being in a position regarding the dealing with another person's emotions. It was why he chose to feel nothing at all. Not only that, but he began to feel a certain level of discomfort when he noticed that she seemed somewhat lovely in the passing light. He couldn't deny that she was attractive in her own right, but such silly emotions were not fitting to him.

"What about you?" Claire asked, "Do you have parents?"

Wesker was silent before speaking. "No."

"Oh... I'm sorry. I didn't mean to..." Claire started apologizing, thinking that it may have been a sensitive subject for him.

"We're here." Wesker interrupted her when they stopped in front of the hotel that she was staying at.

Claire sensed that he wanted her out of the car and that she may have moved entirely too far into his personal life. She did sit there for a moment in an awkward sort of silence. "I'm sorry if I brought up something I shouldn't have," she told him, "If you don't want to talk about it, that's okay."

Wesker gave her a somewhat bored expression. "It's fine. It's not important."

Claire nodded her head. "I understand." She looked at him now. "You don't have to be so stoic all of the time, you know. I'm not your enemy here." Why did she say that? What did it matter how he felt about her? Claire barely knew him anyway.

Wesker actually smiled. Not yet.

"Hehe. Am I supposed to be frightened?" He sounded like he was trying to joke, but it came out foreign and very weird.

The two didn't see Jill walking down the street with her jacket wrapped around her waist. The cold didn't bother her quite as much and she was wearing a thick sweater. She paused at the sight of the two in the car, just sitting there and talking together. She squinted curiously and tilted her head to one side.

Claire was laughing softly at Wesker's attempt at a joke. "Jesus, I think you just made a joke," she teased, "Should we call Ripley's?"

They both shared a quick bout of laughter at that, despite the suddenly peculiar change in the air temperature around them. And then, Wesker's amused smile seemed to disappear into a smaller frown. Claire stopped laughing and she mirrored the expression, staring at him questionably, wondering what was wrong this time to make him stare at her like could feel the change in the air, a warm and intoxicating sensation that made her chest lightly ache into a tight knot. She wasn't sure, but she was almost positive that they were sitting closer to one another.

Wesker's breathing had all but quieted almost to silence and it was difficult when she forced her own breathing to silence as well. He seemed to move closer to her and Claire suddenly felt terrified of this moment. She knew that she shouldn't let it happen, but the tugging pull at her heart seemed to become more and more difficult to fight as she took in the smells of him. One smelled like grass, a masculine scent of deodorant and cologne and even a tinge of the beer that he had drank.

Claire didn't want to look up at his eyes to see what he might be thinking, and she inched her face closer and closer until her smooth lips slowly moved against his rough ones. Immediately, she felt her mind spinning out of control into a dark, hot place of pure sensation. This wasn't happening. No, it couldn't be happening. She wasn't kissing this man who was twice her age. She wasn't enjoying it. It didn't feel pretty good to her and she didn't enjoy it if only just a little.

But she did.

Wesker made a very strange noise that resembled a mix between a cat purr and a deep growling sound. He reached up with a single hand to push her away, but she felt something change and his hand instead moved to her neck, fingers pressing into the skin there in a very comfortable and arousing way.

_Oh God, what am I doing?_ she wondered, completely shocked, _This is bad, I can't-_

Her mind totally derailed when she felt his tongue brush the edges of her lips and her own rose to meet it. He tilted his head to deepen the kiss, grasping some of her hair to move her head back a little bit. Claire made a sound that made Wesker say something against her mouth, but she didn't even hear him.

Finally, that strange, exciting world that she had visited was yanked out from under her as soon as she felt herself shoved away with two firm hands. He had his head jerked to the side from her view and soft heavy breathing sounds echoed from him. Claire watched him for a few moments, struggling to calm her heart and her breathing. She could still taste him on her lips and her fingers seemed to be electrified from just touching him. He looked at her and even though she couldn't see his eyes, she knew they must have been filled with something other than just bitterness.

"Get out of my car..." he whispered, his voice gruff and angry.

Claire nodded and quickly rushed out of there as fast as she could. She didn't want to be there any longer than she should. Just as she turned, his car squealed away into the darkness like a madman. Jill was watching from the street with a shocked look on her face.

She had seen everything now.

O

Note- Like it? Reviews are needed in the emergency room, STAT! :)


	4. 3

**A Fleeting Moment  
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**Disclaimer**: Welcome one and all to my first ever...*NAH-NAH-NAH*...CLAIRE AND WESKER PAIRING! This will be a M only for the violent scenes and language. Maybe some romance if you stick around and review. Hehehe. No, there will be, I promise you that. The title came from listening to Nightwish's song "Nemo". I dunno. After hearing the lyrics and thinking about it, I came up with this pairing for the first time. It is brief and in all honesty, was because I lost the magic for it.

_"Not one or two, Subhuti, not one or two, but all the beings - men, women, animals, birds, trees, rocks. All the beings in the world. One should create such a determination that `I will lead all of them into nirvana'."_

-Buddha

_"'Tis strange what a man may do, and a woman yet think him an angel."_

-William Makepeace Thackeray

**By: VampireQueenAkasha**

_"There's no point in hiding."_

-Wesker, Resident Evil 5

**Chapter Three: Secrets Worth Keeping**

_Raccoon City_

Jill was early to the R.P.D. building even though she wasn't scheduled to work that day. It was strange because some of the guys were not known to be there early and yet, she noticed that they were. Most of the time, they only arrived at the precise point that they had to be there. They also seemed to be moving about in a hurried fashion, trying to get stuff done; Brad was carrying stacks of folders and envelopes in his arms, rushing across the lobby with a drained, hung over look on his face. Jill stopped him and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Brad, where's Wesker?" she asked, "I have to talk to him."

Brad stared at her wearily. "I wouldn't talk to him right now."

"Why not?"

"He's been in a REAL bad mood all morning!" Brad told her, discreetly glancing over his shoulder to make sure that Wesker was not within earshot. "Yelling at all of us to work double time on paperwork, cleaning up the cars, the garages and everything in between. I'd leave him alone if I were you."

Jill arched a brow and turned to go, voice slightly argumentative. "It's kind of important."

Brad shrugged his shoulders. "Your funeral!" he called after her.

Jill ignored the call and looked around for Wesker. She found him at his desk, writing something down on a piece of paper and occasionally going back at another folder. When she approached his desk, he glanced up at her from the tops of his glasses.

"Can I help you?" he asked, somewhat curtly.

"Captain, is something wrong?" Jill asked, "You've been..." She hesitated when he glared at her, almost daring her to say something very stupid to piss him off. Jill caught the look and sighed before she tried very carefully with her next words. "...very different today."

Wesker didn't like her choice of words, that was certain. "Why is that of any concern to you?" he asked, harshly.

Jill gestured behind her, indicating the shadow of Brad behind the door, lurched over a trash can and vomiting heavily. "Well, Brad is puking in the garbage cans..." she pointed out.

Wesker didn't seem to care at all about that and resumed his writing. "Is that all?" he said.

Jill shook her head. Maybe Wesker felt a little angry about what had happened between himself and Claire. Maybe it was just for the best that she kept out of it, but any good friend would be worried about the consequences. She could have talked about it with Claire before the woman left for her campus. Claire did say that she would leave this morning, so maybe Jill could catch her on her cell phone. But she wanted to make sure that Wesker was not going to hold that against her first.

"You seem troubled, that's all," Jill offered, "Is everything okay?"

The pen paused in writing and Wesker sighed before glaring up at her. "I'm fine. Now out."

"But-"

"OUT!"

Jill sighed and turned, walking out of the office and into the hallway. She would have to talk to Claire about this. Even though she didn't want to tell anyone else, she had to tell someone. Chris had to be told about it, but he was already so worried about other things, this would probably make it worse.

So she exited the building to go to the hotel where Claire was.

Her motorcycle was there, parked in the lot, so she must not have left yet. Jill walked up to the door and knocked, knowing that Claire always parked in front of the doors where she would enter and exit from. After waiting for a long time of no answer, Jill sighed, picked her cell phone out of her pants pocket and began to dial Claire's number. She could hear it ringing inside the room and she tapped her foot impatiently for Claire to answer. She wasn't about to stand here all day.

Claire was sprawled beneath the sheets, mumbling sleepily. She felt around the nightstand for her phone and even inched forward. When she grabbed it, she had slid out too far from the bed and fell with a sharp thud and a quick, tired curse. Jill heard the thud from outside and flinched somewhat.

Claire wearily brought the phone to her ear. "Yeah?"

_"It's Jill. Open the door."_

Claire blinked sleepily and glanced up at her front door, confused. "Jill? What are you..." She opened the front door and stared at Jill skeptically. "What are you doing here?" She stared down at her cell phone, then to Jill's before hanging the phone up.

"We need to talk about something," Jill said, gently, "I think that it's important for me to understand what's going on."

Claire smiled and shrugged, clueless. "What do you mean?"

"I saw you two last night in the parking lot," Jill said, staring at her with all the worry and compassion of a friend. She watched the smile totally vanish from Claire's face and the color with it. "What happened anyway? Too many drinks or something? Because captain Wesker's never been a drinker."

Claire shook her head. "I really don't know why I did it, Jill," she said, guiltily, "But you can't tell Chris."

"Why not?"

"Because he's already got enough on his plate as it is. He needs to stay focused and not worry about me all the time." Claire started to go back inside. "Besides, it wasn't like it meant anything. It was just one stupid move anyway. Not happening again."

_Liar._

Jill seemed relieved, but not entirely convinced. After all, she couldn't lie that captain Wesker was a bit handsome and charming in his own way. He had a way of stunning the ladies even with a smile that he rarely used. "Well, I just want to make sure that you're alright, okay? I'm just worried about you."

Claire smiled somewhat. "You don't have to. I can take care of myself."

Jill couldn't resist a laugh. That was just like the Redfield's; they always though that they could handle themselves. She turned to depart as well. "Okay, I just wanted to check up on you and make sure everything was all right. I guess I'll see you later then?"

Claire smiled back at her. "Yeah, no problem."

After Jill left, Claire started in on getting a nice warm shower before she could set off for campus. After her shower, she walked into her room while drying her hair. Smiling, she turned on the radio at the end table and it began to play John Parr's _"Restless Heart". _While she started on making some coffee, her phone rang loudly, interrupting her before she could even add hot water to the pot. Claire turned the radio down and stared at her phone curiously, studying the ID on the tiny screen. It read: **RPD OFFICE**. Figuring that it might have been Chris, Claire picked it up and laughed slightly.

"Chris, I'm about to leave soon, what is it?" she asked.

_"Good morning, Miss. Redfield."_

Claire was startled to hear Wesker's voice on the other end. "Wesker?" she said, a little unnerved, "How did you get this number?"

_"Your brother's personal file, of course. Listed right under emergency contacts."_ He sounded amused. _"Forgive me, but I couldn't just ask him for your number. I have more sensibilities than that. I simply wanted to discuss what happened last night."_

Claire chuckled slightly. "Wesker, I don't think that it was anything," she argued, "I was just a little tipsy from the drinks. I didn't mean to kiss you."

A little bit of silence answered her before he spoke again. "_Didn't you?"_

"No, I didn't."

Wesker made a thoughtful sound before he continued and he sounded absolutely cunning. _"Somehow I cannot believe that."_

Claire was a little insulted by the assumption. "What's that supposed to mean?"

_"Come now, dear heart, you know what it means."_

Dear heart? The sudden nickname that came out of left field somehow sent a shiver down her back. Claire wasn't really liking where this was going at all. "Wesker, don't even get confused here. It meant nothing, alright? Don't even make assumptions when you don't even know!"

A chuckle answered her. _"I am not the one who sounds unsure right now, dear heart."_

"Don't call me that!" Claire nearly shouted, "It's creepy!"

_"Then what should I call you?"_

Claire calmed and sighed. "This was a nice conversation and all, but I have to go." Then, she hung the phone up and resumed her tasks to get moving before things got even more weird.

On the other end, Wesker was smiling smugly at the phone. He hung it up on the receiver before chuckling quietly to himself. Claire Redfield was a rather fascinating young woman. He couldn't quite understand his interest with her himself, but he did find that she was...intriguing. Why did he feel like that? It was strange to him because Wesker had never considered exploring matters of the opposite sex before. His work gave little time for trivial things like that and he never felt the desire to do so.

But she felt like an intriguing new toy to him. Maybe something he could use in the future to get what he needed from Umbrella and even his associates here with S.T.A.R.S. Only time would tell what would be in store for the younger girl. He would admit that the action left him a bit miffed because he was not expecting such a thing from a stranger. Wesker hated being thrown off of his cool that way; although it was easy to bounce back up given the reason easing his frustrations out on his subordinates. It was childish, perhaps and a tad bit undeserving, but Wesker had to move back into the swing of things after that had happened to him.

"Captain Wesker?"

The familiar voice of Chris snapped him out of his thoughts and he glanced up at him. "What is it, Chris?" he asked.

"Was that my sister on the phone just now?"

Wesker's eyes glittered slightly behind his lenses before he continued. Chris was too smart for his own good, Wesker had to agree to that. When it came to certain situations, Chris could be quite simple-minded and needless to say, somewhat of a moron. But sometimes he showed signs of being a bit...of a nuisance.

"Yes, as a matter of fact, it was." Wesker leaned back into his chair.

Chris looked somewhat concerned. "Is she alright?"

"She is fine. She wanted to check up on you to see how well you arrived home last night," Wesker put on the most convincing expression that he could, "She had to move quickly to return to her university, so she felt it necessary to call me and pass the word."

Chris smiled and Wesker knew that the lie had worked. "That sounds like something that Claire would do."

Wesker nodded in agreement. "Is that all?"

Chris shrugged his shoulders and turned halfway. He seemed to be bothered by something because he continued to stare at the phone. Wesker raised a brow and remained impassive as Chris shook his head to himself and walked out of the office.

_Poor Chris, he cannot help how much of a fool he is_... Wesker mused to himself.

_Later_

Wesker entered Umbrella's laboratories in somewhat better spirits that night, but not until one of the lesser class associates, Michael Harker decided to sneak up on him in the elevator with a broad grin on his face that suggested anything but professional. Wesker had never passed him by all that much because he worked with William more than anyone else, but he hated Harker for one reason only: the man was completely and unquestionably unpleasant to be around. Wesker would have rather dealt with Joseph's annoying ramblings for an entire night.

"Okay, we can do this the easy way or the hard way, Albert," he teased, "I can bust your balls here while we're alone or I can do it at our lunch break."

"Go away." Wesker snapped, "I refuse to deal with you tonight."

The elevator doors roared open and the two scientists walked out into the hallways of the laboratories. Harker continued to pester Wesker about his evening. "Come on, you can tell me if something happened last night!" he teased, "No one will know, I promise!"

"Back off, you intrusive little insect!" Wesker ordered, venomously. He stepped into a room where William was pouring something in a flask.

Harker leaned against the doorway with his arms folded and a continuous smirk on his face. "Alright, I know when I'm being a pest."

"No you don't." William piped up, not looking up from his flasks.

Harker gave him a look before continuing, looking at Wesker as the man gathered a set of gloves. "Don't you want to know why I'm here anyway?"

"Not particularly." Wesker answered, dryly.

Harker tsked and shook his head at the remark. Then, he looked serious this time and leaned forward slightly. "You, uh, might not be needing those gloves really," he told him, "The MA-121's look like they might pull through this time."

Wesker looked up with intrigue, his anger melting away from his face. "Really?"

Harker grinned and nodded. The three men walked down further into the holding cells to see the progress that Harker was talking about. Annette Birkin was already down in the cells, jotting down notes on her clipboard. She was standing in front of a fortified sheet of metal that covered one of the cells. There were two guards standing beside the cell in full armor, powerful shock rifles, and expressions empty and cold. Wesker glanced down at Annette curiously.

"What do you have for us, Annette?" he asked.

She smiled at them. "See for yourself."

She pulled a lever beside the cell and the doors roared open. Immediately, the lights flashed on, bathing the entire cell in brightness. The three men gazed inside at a shocking display; inside the glass encasing were at least four shapes lying there, sleeping soundly. The sounds were heavy, water-filled and deep, echoing richly off of the metal walls. The figures looked human in build, but instead of flesh, the shapes were covered in bright green scales and jagged talons. They looked like humanoid frogs with sharp teeth and spines. Each one of them wore a metallic bracelet on their ankles with numbers labeled on them.

"Have they stirred in the last few hours?" Wesker asked, turning to Harker.

"Not much." Harker replied, "They just fell asleep after being fed."

Wesker knotted his brows and walked over to the glass, knocking it slightly. One of the creatures inside stirred a bit and blinked behind scaly lids, stretching and flexing its toes before rolling onto its side. He smiled, pleased.

"What have you fed them?" he asked, glancing sidelong at the man.

Harker smirked at him and gestured with a flirt of his head inside the cell. Wesker looked and noticed remains of what looked like cloth and armor from a UBCS soldier. He could have only guessed that the poor fool had done something to deserve such a pitiful fate.

"He didn't have a family," Harker commented, with a cruel chuckle, "He won't be missed."

The sounds of their voices seemed to stir the creatures inside and one of them opened its eyes; pure gold, slit like a cat's. They met Wesker's with a sleepily irritated look and its mouth opened, uttering a loud, shrieking yawn. For a moment, man and monster stared at one another, neither flinching. Wesker stared the creature down hard, testing its obediance to him. Oddly enough, the creature seemed uninterested with trying to match the man and simply went back to sleep.

"Harker?" Wesker said.

"Yes?"

"How well do these creatures obey orders?"

Harker frowned thoughtfully before replying. "We haven't really made any tests on that just yet, but Spencer expect results very soon. He's really excited about the success of these creatures. We will be doing some more tests very soon."

"Good."

The Arklay Manor will be the perfect testing grounds for these creatures... Wesker pondered, smiling thoughtfully to himself, We will see just what S.T.A.R.S. is capable of handling outside petty human issues.

Later on, William and Wesker were standing inside a laboratory where two other scientists were lifting glass vials from a large medical refrigerator. Their gloved hands slipped them into a foam lined carry case. The vials were delicate, filled with a cool blue liquid. With their superiors observing, it made this more unnerving for them. William gave Wesker a thoughtful frown, watching the man staring at the two doctors.

"Are you sure about this?" he asked, "I haven't made enough tests to know that it works."

There was a considerate tone in William's voice that made Wesker smile. Despite really having no bond with any other human being, William was possibly the closet friend he had ever had. Wesker knew that William was concerned.

"I have faith in you, William," Wesker replied, picking up a mechanical syringe and fitting it inside the carrying case. "Which is more than I can say for any other human wretch." He closed the case and turned to him. "You have nothing to worry about."

William nodded, slightly convinced. Wesker had a calm way of going about things even if they seemed perilous. He only hoped that his testing of the G-virus would finish up without a hitch. He knew that Spencer was becoming suspicious of his actions lately, but with Wesker getting him cover, he would be fine. Soon, he could even have the government on his side if Spencer decided to take or even kill him for his virus.

William turned to one of the security cameras and noticed a man standing in the lobby by the window. He squinted and frowned, trying to see what it was the man was doing. He was dressed in a brown suit and tie and seemed to just be standing there doing nothing. People were passing by him, acting as if he wasn't even there. William wasn't sure, but the man almost looked familiar to him. Like an old fellow professor...

Suddenly, the man looked directly at him on screen and appeared to be smiling. William felt a bit deterred by the sight and he took a quick step back. Now he remembered why the man looked so familiar. It looked exactly like Dr. Marcus. The very same Dr. Marcus who was killed in a gun-shot raid ordered by Spencer. He and Wesker both had planned the entire thing and it was William who had taken over the man's research. But that couldn't be him. No it couldn't...

"William?"

Wesker's voice interrupted his thoughts and he stared at the man curiously as if nothing was wrong at all. "What?"

"What is it?"

William looked back at the screen and noticed that the man was gone. He frowned suspiciously and shook his head, looking back at Wesker. "I don't know. I just could have sworn that I saw Dr. Marcus in the lobby..."

Wesker chuckled and shook his head. "William, you and I both know that he's dead." He picked up the case. "Why don't you take some time to rest. I think you are becoming a bit too paranoid for your own good."

William nodded in agreement, but he couldn't help but stare back at the screen doubtfully.

Wesker left the building later that night, taking the case to his car. He started to turn the engine over, but paused and leaned back in his seat, closing his eyes. He removed his glasses and rubbed the bridge of his nose, taking a deep exhale. He couldn't keep his thoughts clear today. Most of them were so focused on Claire because of that late night incident yesterday. He couldn't keep thinking about it; he was only human and that was mostly the problem. Hopefully with William's serum, that could be easily rectified.

It won't even matter anymore once I become the ruler that I was meant to be...

O

_Note_-So? Reviews are awesome! Tell me how I'm doing! 8D


	5. 4

**A Fleeting Moment**

**Disclaimer:** Welcome one and all to my first ever...*NAH-NAH-NAH*...CLAIRE AND WESKER PAIRING! This will be a M only for the violent scenes and language. Maybe some romance if you stick around and review. Hehehe. No, there will be, I promise you that. The title came from listening to Nightwish's song "Nemo". I dunno. After hearing the lyrics and thinking about it, I came up with this pairing for the first time. It is brief and in all honesty, was because I lost the magic for it.

_"Not one or two, Subhuti, not one or two, but all the beings - men, women, animals, birds, trees, rocks. All the beings in the world. One should create such a determination that `I will lead all of them into nirvana'."_

-Buddha

_"'Tis strange what a man may do, and a woman yet think him an angel."_

-William Makepeace Thackeray

**By: VampireQueenAkasha**

_"There's no point in hiding."_

-Wesker, Resident Evil 5

**Chapter Four: Anxiety in the Air**

_Raccoon City_

"All right, sweethearts, what are you waiting for? Breakfast in bed? Get your asses in gear! Another glorious day in STARS! A day on the force is like a day on the farm. Every meal's a banquet! Every paycheck a fortune! Every formation a parade!"

The sound of Forest's goofy speech made Rebecca roll her eyes with disdain as she prepared her medical equipment to a small pouch on her belt. Enrico Marini, the Captain of Bravo Team stepped into the locker room and surveyed his team with that same stern frown that he was famous for. He was second in command to Wesker and even he had the scowl down pat like the Alpha Team Leader did. Rebecca always respected him to the letter as she did with Wesker.

"Alright, we have our orders," he announced, "We're being sent to the Arklay mountains to investigate the situation."

Richard shrugged his shoulders, clearly confused. "Situation?"

Rebecca gave him a look. "Didn't you read your messages this morning?"

He shrugged one shoulder innocently. "When do I EVER read my memos?"

Rebecca shook her head with dismay. "That-That's a good point..."

Enrico continued. "I want this clean and fuck-up free," he told them, "That means everyone stays together, do you understand? We've had reports that people have either gone up missing or killed. I want no casualties and no bloodshed out there. Remember, people...trigger discipline."

His team gave simultaneous murmurs of agreement and nods.

Enrico smiled. "All right, everyone, you're a team and there's nothin' to worry about. We go where we have to, and we are going to conquer the bad guys, and we are going to save the people, is that understood? That's what we gonna do, team, we are going to go and stop these murders. All right, people, on the ready line!"

They marched out of the room and Kenneth began to chant as they rushed out to the heli-pad and piled into the STARS helicopter. "Move it out! Move it out! Assholes and elbows in the chopper! Get hot, ladies! One, two, three, four, Richard is a dirty whore! Five, six, seven, eight, Ed can never get a date!" He laughed to himself at the irritated looks from Richard and Edward. "One, two, three, four, five, six, seven! Oh yeah! We are absolutely badassess! Let's pack 'em in! Get in there!" He gave Rebecca a humorous smirk and pushed her inside.

The helicopter roared to life and took to the skies toward Arklay forests.

Wesker watched the departure of the helicopter and smirked coldly to himself. Everything was going according to his plans. Once Bravo team was taken out, all that he had to do was take Alpha team to the experimental facility in Arklay mountains for the final tests. Everything had to go quietly and smoothly to prevent any form of suspicion.

_Later_

Claire had difficulty paying any attention to detail today. She was working on her motorcycle and listening to the gentle sounds of Lynard Skynard's _"Tuesday's Gone"_ in her garage, but even her favorite hobby didn't help to take her mind off of what had happened in Wesker's car. It wasn't like Claire to do something like that, much less feel any kind of sick attraction to older men. She was a rebel at heart, but she never indulged in those kind of pleasurable sins of the flesh.

What would her brother think?

"Claire!"

The woman looked up with a small sound. Her professor was standing over her with a corded receiver in his hand. Professor Gabriel Byrnes, covered head to toe in grease and engine fluid. He had been her teacher in mechanics for a few years now. He was pretty easy-going when he wanted to be and strict in any other regard.

He cupped the speaker and spoke quietly. "There's a man on the phone who wants to speak to you."

Claire frowned. "Who is it?"

"I don't know, he didn't say," Gabriel replied. He looked a little concerned. "I told him that I can't just give the phone to you unless I have an idea that you know who he is."

Claire shrugged her shoulders. If he wasn't interested in giving out his name, then she wasn't interested in speaking to him. She could see Gabriel at the corner of her eye attempting to reason with the man over the phone. She watched a bored look cross his face, slowly followed by a grim frown and even a glimmer of unease before he offered the phone to her.

"He says that it is very important that he speak to Miss. Redfield."

Claire frowned with confusion as Gabriel quickly disappeared outside and she brought the receiver to her ear. "Okay, who is this and why the hell are you calling me?" she asked, in a bored voice.

_"You are a difficult woman to contact."_

Claire's eyes widened at the sound of Wesker's voice on the other end. "Wesker?" she cried, "What the hell are you doing calling me here? I clearly thought that I told you I didn't want to talk to you again."

On the other end, Wesker was sitting at a desk in a control room and casually rolling a small pencil back and forth on his desk. In front of him were many computer screens with images of Bravo Team in the Arklay mountains. He smiled pleasantly at the almost uneasy sound of Claire's voice. _"I don't recall that ever being a part of our bargain, Miss. Redfield,"_ he said, _"I was simply calling to ask how you would feel about your brother going on a particularly dangerous trip."_

Claire wasn't sure that she liked where this MAY have been going. "What do you mean?"

In a way, Wesker was revealing the truth to her without being entirely truthful. He wanted to test this girl's resolve, to see how attached she was to her brother. _"What I mean is that the events taking place in the Arklay mountains have been left a mystery for too long. I am sending Alpha Team to investigate and I will be accompanying them. I wanted to make sure that you've said all that needs to be said to your brother on the off-chance that something...could happen."_

Claire shook her head in disbelief. "That's not funny, Wesker!"

_"I never said that it was, dear heart," he replied, "I am being wholly honest with you. Are you willing to accept fate should something happen to your brother?"_ He chuckled softly at the silence on the other end. _"There's no need to worry about it, though. Chris is in good hands."_

Claire furrowed her brows. He wasn't telling her everything. Something akin to women's intuition told her that it wasn't the only reason why he had called. A strange feeling even in between their phone connection. "That wasn't what you were going to tell me."

Wesker hand paused in fingering with the pencil.

"Wesker, I want you to stop calling me," Claire said, shaking the strange feeling away, "I don't want to talk to you anymore, understand? Just leave me alone." She hung up the phone before he could counter her with another of his snippy remarks. She stared at her phone for a moment before frowning and taking a deep breath. Her heart was hammering in her chest for reasons she didn't want to accept.

On the other side, Wesker stared at the humming phone in his hands before his finger tightened on the pencil and it snapped beneath his strength.

_July 23rd, 1998_

Wesker and William watched the progress of Rebecca Chambers inside the train. Everything was going wrong up until this point with the leak of the T-virus. William stared down at a impassive Wesker, sensing that something was bothering the man. Wesker had been particularly quiet all day since he had got there and it made William somewhat uneasy. One would think that he had SOMETHING to say given the circumstances or at least be displeased with them, but he was quiet instead.

"Are you alright?" he asked.

Wesker frowned up at him. "I'm fine. Let's just focus on what's going on right now."

William nodded in agreement, but he still seemed doubtful about Wesker's condition. He looked at the screens, watching Rebecca jump back at the sight of one of those undead things. He could hear the UBCS soldiers over the intercom system giving their report while Wesker listened. "This does not make any sense. How was the T-Virus leaked? And why did it contaminate both the lab in the mansion, as well as a train almost three miles away?" He shook his head.

Wesker quickly cupped his hand over the mic and gave William a stern frown. "That's irrelevant! We must make sure no knowledge of this gets out. Destroy the train. Completely!" When William gave an acknowledging smile, Wesker spoke into the mic again to the soldiers. "How far away are you from the nearest branch line?"

"About ten minutes to.."

Suddenly, there was a sound of agony from the man followed by rapid machine gun fire. Wesker and William looked stunned. "What happened?" Wesker demanded. There were sounds of pained gurgling, sick slurping sounds from something obviously inhuman and then, dead silence. Wesker tapped the mic buttons again and again to try and re-establish a connection. "Come in, soldier. Come in!" At the empty static, Wesker uttered a curse and leaned back in his chair. "Dammit!"

William was quiet for a moment before he gestured to the screens. "Who on earth are those people?" he asked.

Wesker glanced up at the screens. Rebecca was communicating with a male sporting handcuffs on one of his wrists. It looked as if he had broken one of them and Rebecca was giving him some help with his wounded arm. He smiled to himself as he watched them moving quickly through the training facility's main lobby with their weapons aimed at everything and nothing. They were like stupid animals to him, nothing more. But he DID find it intriguing that they had come this far already.

"What the hell are we gonna do now? What are we gonna do?" Rebecca demanded, looking around.

Billy raised his brows sarcastically. "Maybe we could build a fire, sing a couple of songs, huh? Why don't we try that?"

Wesker looked up at William, ignoring the mindless drivel between the two on the screens. "She's just a rookie, a member of S.T.A.R.S." he replied.

William seemed pleased with the information. "Hmm, and what about the male."

"I'm unfamiliar with him."

A voice suddenly exploded from the speakers in the hallways of the building and even reached Wesker and William.

"Hmm?"

William reacted with confusion. Hadn't the facility been cleared out by then? In the hall, Rebecca and Billy looked around trying to find the source of the voice.

_"Attention! This is Dr. Marcus. Please be silent as we reflect upon our company motto. Obedience breeds discipline, discipline breeds unity, unity breeds power, power is life."_

The monitors Wesker and William were looking at switch to the image of a cloaked man in white with long brown hair. The man chuckled at them. William frowned intensely while Wesker leaned forward, trying to figure out if he had seen this man before.

"Who are you?" he demanded.

_"It was I who scattered the T-Virus in the mansion, needless to say I contaminated the train too."_ The man seemed nothing but amused by what he had done.

"What?" William cried.

The man grinned broadly at his reaction. _"For revenge..on Umbrella!"_

The man closed his eyes and stretched out his arms as he began to sing in a haunting, almost comforting melody. As if responding to his call the leeches formed a mass in front of him and reformed the old man that William had seen in the lobby.

"Dr. Marcus?" he gasped, horrified.

The man chuckled softly. "Ten years ago, Dr. Marcus was murdered by Umbrella. You helped them, didn't you?"

Wesker scowled deeply upon hearing this and the man laughed as the screens blacked out.

O

It was 3:00 in the morning when Claire called Chris. She couldn't sleep after having that conversation with Wesker. After what had been going on in Raccoon City's forests, she couldn't put her finger on something that seemed...off somehow. He sounded sleepy when he answered the phone and she was just relieved to hear his voice regardless.

"Hello?" he whispered.

_"Chris, it's me."_

"Claire?" Something shuffled in the background and she could only guess that he was looking at his clock. Finally, she heard a sigh. "Claire, it's 3:00 in the morning. I have to be at work in a few hours to go to the mountains for my investigation. What's wrong?"

_"No, not really anyway,"_ Claire said, _"I just wanted to talk to you before you went out. It's going to be dangerous I know."_ She left out the part about Wesker. Chris had to stay focused on his mission.

Chris seemed slightly more awake in his next words. Claire could hear some form of alarm in his voice. She couldn't argue with him because it was unlike her to call like this. "Claire, what's really wrong?" he asked, "You don't call unless something's REALLY bothering you."

Claire made herself sound believable. _"I was just worried, that's all."_

On the other end, Chris was lying in bed, shirtless and staring up at the ceiling as he listened to Claire.

_"I just wanted to call, in case..."_

Chris furrowed his brow and even smiled slightly. "Claire, that's not like you to worry like that," he joked, chuckling softly in a follow up of his next words, "Don't worry, I'll be fine, I promise. I'm always fine, remember? Big brother ain't going anywhere."

Claire laughed softly. _"Okay, I guess I'll see you then."_

"Get some sleep, Claire. You can't be worrying all the time."

Chris sounded very understanding about this whole thing and she didn't even have to mention Wesker. _"Okay, goodnight, Chris,"_ she said, _"Bye."_

Chris smiled gently. "See ya'." He hung up the phone on the receiver and furrowed his brow skyward. There was no way he was getting back to sleep now. Something had riled his sister to call him. He knew that Claire usually kept an upbeat attitude no matter what the case was. He only wished that he had remembered to ask her before telling her goodbye. Maybe he could call her before his mission tomorrow, that way, it would give them both a bit of piece of mind.

Meanwhile, Claire did what she could to find sleep possible. She striped down to a tank top and a pair of underwear and even turned on some music. After a moment of struggle, she finally fell asleep. But even in dream, she was not peaceful.

O

Claire was dreaming and floating in a dark, empty coldness, listening to the sounds of screams and cries from people she had not even met and even some that were undoubtedly familiar to her. Rebecca's voice wailed out in agony, the S.T.A.R.S. member's voices rang out in pain and anger.

_"You got her involved just for that?_

_"We'll see which one of us is gonna die!"_

_"Jill! Help! NOOOOOOOOO!"_

_"No! We are not done yet! NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"_

_"...mo...ther..."_

_The voices began to drown out into a demonic whirring sound and just then, they abruptly stopped with a quick hushed sound and the air was still. Claire could feel herself lying down on something extremely soft and comfortable and she felt a sense of peace for that moment. There were gentle waves of warmth flowing through her arms and legs. Something was touching her beneath a veil of pure silk, something that left an amazing sensation surging through her entire being._

_Claire made a soft moan of pleasure, her head tilting back as soft, lips came down upon her throat, gently touching, tasting and biting. Her eyes started to open, but the stranger wouldn't let her._

_"Keep them closed. Do not open them." he whispered. His voice was deep and powerful, and somewhat familiar. But her brain couldn't function right now._

_He stroked her hair, lovingly and then ran his fingertips over her eyes, down to her delicate, smooth cheeks. Claire felt warm all over. The touches were delicate and delicious. Even in dream, she was enjoying this a lot, but she was torn between wanting to see and torn between the fantasy of being touched in such a way. There was a whisper in the back of her mind telling her that something wasn't right, but she just couldn't think right now, victim of such a delightful game._

_"Claire...don't..."_

_Chris' desperate voice called to her in the back of her dream void, but Claire couldn't reach it. She felt that she didn't know the voice at all. Flames of absolute heat encircled her and the strange man and she could hear an almost powerful screaming sound within the hot blaze. She felt lips touch down upon hers and warm wetness of his tongue sliding into her mouth. The kiss was tender, yet carried with it hidden promises of something much more feral and hungry._

_Claire's head was spinning against the sensations of his warm mouth and the feeling of his hands on her naked body._

_"Claire, please..."_

_There was that voice again, pleading and desperate this time._

_"Don't listen to him, dear heart..." the man whispered, against her lips, pressing down for another deep kiss before continuing, "Listen to me instead..." Another kiss, "Listen and..." Another kiss, "Obey..." His head tilted as he deepened the kiss between them._

_That name... That strange nickname sent warning light flashing across her head, but her body didn't want to obey the warnings. Her soul rejected them and her heart shrieked protests against stopping anything going on between the two._

_Claire was lying in the center of the fiery dream world, naked, her aching body straining against this strange man's. Flesh against flesh and lips connecting; it was passionate, erotic. She felt her legs wrap around his muscular waist and her fingers smoothed back down the base of his head, through short strands of blonde hair._

_Blonde..._

_"That's right, let yourself feel it..." the man whispered. Slowly, his voice began to carry a slight accent to it. "This is not wrong."_

_Claire moaned softly and her eyes fluttered open. She looked up at her dream lover, and then the fantasy turned into a nightmare. She was horrified to see that she was embracing Wesker. He was smiling down at her, his blue eyes half-lidded and practically glowing with lust. His teeth bared themselves into a hungry smile. Claire tried to pull away, but Wesker's hands came down onto her wrists and she stared up at him, deeply alarmed and gasping with terror at his presence._

_He said nothing more, but smiled again and leaned down to kiss her neck. Claire gave a frightened groan and arched her back to try and wriggle away from him, but it did no good. It was as if she was rooted to the spot, unable to move. Even though she was fighting him, something inside of her wanted to give in. A deep yearning that seemed to burn inside of her chest. She looked completely ashamed of herself when Wesker leaned forward to look into her frightened eyes._

_"You like that," he whispered, "It's okay to like it." He pressed his lips against hers for another kiss before smiling darkly at her. "No one can ever touch you as I touch you."_

_Claire stared up at him as he released his grip on her wrists. She clutched at his arms, her nails digging into the soft, warm flesh. She squeezed her eyes shut at the soft sighing sound from him. He reached beneath her and lifted her into his lap. She uttered a gasp at his actions. She felt weightless in his powerful arms._

_"This isn't real." she whispered, her voice strained with passion and fear. "It can't be real. It can't..."_

_Wesker chuckled softly and rubbed his hand up and down against her exposed back, across her shoulders and against her neck where he cupped her cheek in one delicate grip. It was strange that he was being so gentle, his touch teasing and deliberate as it moved so lightly over her skin like a breath of air. Claire could feel a raging fire drawing closer and closer, pulling itself deep inside of her, entering her brain and swallowing all of her fears and pain. She wanted to give in..._

_"You want this, my dear heart," Wesker crooned, his voice slowly beginning to drown out in her head, "You want to leave all of this trivial life behind and be with me. It's what you want. I can feel your desire, my sweet Claire. Come to me..."_

_Claire moaned softly, shuddering against him as his lips wove arousing paths down her neck and in between her breasts. She clung to him desperately, fighting the urge to submit to him and defy him all at once._

Claire snapped awake at the sound of her clock alarm blaring out. She looked around dazedly and groaned with frustration, slamming her hand down on the clock. She sat up in bed with a grumble and rubbed her head with one hand. A dream. Damnit. The man wasn't even leaving her alone in her dreams. She couldn't believe that she'd have a dream like that. It still left her shaking and sweating in her bed. Claire made another frustrated sound and climbed out of bed, walking to the window to look out to the rising sun.

"Goddamn it..." she muttered.

_Arklay Mountains_

Meanwhile, Wesker and William were both walking down the dark hallways of the Umbrella facility. William was in the middle of chattering about everything and nothing, reading through a document in his hands.

"It just doesn't make sense. Do you honestly believe this to be the real identity of that crazy young man?" He gave Wesker a skeptical scowl before shaking his head. "Impossible. But, if somehow it is true then Umbrella will be finished."

Wesker shook his head. He really had no worries about what was going to happen for the future of Umbrella. Not now anyway. He had other real concerns right now because he wasn't about to stick around and become a target for the press or the government.

"If the old conspiracy against Dr. Marcus is revealed Mr. Spencer's career will be over, not to mention ours too. So, the time has come at last." They reached the elevator and Wesker pressed the button. He looked thoughtful for a moment.

"What are you going to do?" William asked.

Wesker smiled at him. "I will simply say goodbye to Umbrella. The biological weapon utilizing the T-Virus has almost been completed. Our only remaining task is to acquire combat data."

William looked stunned. How did Wesker expect him to do anything under these conditions? He had to finish his work! "You can't be serious! I refuse to abandon my work! I've finished my research on the T-Virus, but I need a little more time to complete the more powerful G-Virus."

Wesker shrugged his shoulders. "Do as you wish, I will follow my initial plan and lure the S.T.A.R.S. members into the mansion." The elevator doors creaked open and Wesker stepped inside, pressed the button, and turned to face William. "Their superior combat training should make them perfect test subjects." He uttered a laugh.

"Fine, in the meantime, something must be done about that madman," William snapped, "As I recall, URC is equipped with a self-destruct device in the basement. I'll find it, set it off, and annihilate the place to nothing more than a mass of rubble."

Wesker gave him a smile and nodded. He was a bit disappointed about losing the facility, but it was what had to be done.

O

_Note_-Do you smell a review? I know I DO! :)


	6. 5

**A Fleeting Moment**

**Disclaimer: **Welcome one and all to my first ever...*NAH-NAH-NAH*...CLAIRE AND WESKER PAIRING! This will be a M only for the violent scenes and language. Maybe some romance if you stick around and review. Hehehe. No, there will be, I promise you that. The title came from listening to Nightwish's song "Nemo". I dunno. After hearing the lyrics and thinking about it, I came up with this pairing for the first time. It is brief and in all honesty, was because I lost the magic for it.

_"Not one or two, Subhuti, not one or two, but all the beings - men, women, animals, birds, trees, rocks. All the beings in the world. One should create such a determination that `I will lead all of them into nirvana'."_

-Buddha

_"'Tis strange what a man may do, and a woman yet think him an angel."_

-William Makepeace Thackeray

**By: VampireQueenAkasha**

_"There's no point in hiding."_

-Wesker, Resident Evil 5

**Chapter Five: Too Late For the Dead**

_Raccoon City_

Alpha Team sat in the meeting room, listening to Wesker give them the debrief of the situation in Arklay Mountains. On the dry erase board he had written several notes and important clues for them to figure out. Barry seemed tired and rubbed his eyes and the top of his head.

"Alright," Wesker told them, "Bravo Team was suspected to have landed here," He indicated a map of the Arklay Mountains on the board and a small area circled with a red marker. "And we've lost contact for several hours. We are going to investigate the situation and bring our comrades out of there." He surveyed the entire team. Jill was sitting at attention and Brad was fingering with his gun holster. "This is going to be a dangerous mission for all of us, so be prepared to give it your all."

Chris seemed to sit in his chair with a determined strength to him. Well, Wesker couldn't expect any less from the man. He was his top fighter, after all. "All of you, gear up."

They rose from their desks and began to load their weapons into pouches on their belts.

Joseph grinned and loaded up a massive, double-barrel shotgun. "I'm ready for anything they throw at us, man, check it out. I am the ultimate badass!" He smirked at a disgusted Brad. "State of the art badass right here, boy! You do not wanna fuck with me. No you-"

Barry tossed his empty holster at Joseph and it struck his face with a soft grunt. "Knock it off, Frost!" the larger man snapped.

"Jealous?" Joseph shot back.

Jill walked to her locker and opened it to retrieve her model Samurai Edge. She tested the clip and removed the magazine to check the bullet count before she slipped it into her holster. She felt Chris walking up to her and turned. She noticed a slightly troubled look on his face.

"Jill, have you talked with Claire recently?" he asked.

Jill frowned at him. "Uh, yeah, I did. Why?"

Chris scratched the back of his head, almost as if he was embarrassed to talk about this. "She seemed a little upset and called me early this morning. I wasn't sure if you knew something about it that I don't. I just want to make sure that she's alright."

Jill wasn't positive on how Claire would feel if Chris knew what she had done. She couldn't tell him because of her promise that she had made to Claire. Besides, Claire had even mentioned that it was nothing, but Jill's intuition just nagged at her all day that it wasn't entirely true. Captain Wesker seemed a bit off ever since then. Maybe he was just bothered by what had happened and he chose not to talk about it.

Then again, Joseph had a way with rumors or things like that. Anybody in their right mind would keep a secret from him.

"Claire's just been-"

"What exactly are we discussing here?"

The two looked over at Wesker, who was standing there with his arms folded across his chest. He had already suited up with everything that he would need for the trip and was now staring at them both with a bit of displeasure. The two other S.T.A.R.S. members looked at him sheepishly.

"Captain..." Chris began.

"If the two of you are done with your little chit-chat, may I suggest packing the helicopter with medical provisions seeing since Miss. Chambers is no longer with us at this time?" Wesker said, his voice a little less than pleased.

"Yes, sir..." Jill said, before walking away.

Chris watched her go before he looked at Wesker. "Captain..." he started again.

Wesker made a gesture with his hand. "Get to it, Chris."

Chris nodded and departed for the helicopter, but not before giving Wesker a strange look.

_Arklay Mountains_

_1998_

The air was crisp and cold that night, but it didn't bother Wesker as he watched the forest below from the safety of the S.T.A.R.S. helicopter. He kept his gaze on every motion through the vegetation, knowing that what was to come would give his team and himself the fight of their lives. But then again, he had little to concern himself with. After all, he had to keep and maintain a low profile with these fools, stay out of sight from the creatures and he would do fine.

"It's got to be here somewhere..." Chris mumbled, scanning the trees while the searchlight passed repeatedly through the darkness.

Wesker looked at Brad and tapped his shoulder. "Land here."

Brad nodded and the helicopter whirred as it slowly began to descend into the forest. The Alpha Team moved quickly out of the chopper with their weapons armed and at the ready. They noticed the dark, tattered shape of Bravo Team's helicopter lying in the ground. The entire frame was damaged, windows broken and a wicked hole in the front windshield; something had attacked them, that was certain. Although what could do such damage out here?

Jill was staring down at a small monitor on hand that revealed images seen through her head cam as well. It displayed **Joseph.F** in the upper-left corner, **REC** in the upper-right corner, and **07/24/98 **in the bottom-left corner. She furrowed her brow at the static that filtered through it and tapped her cam once with her fist. She sighed and looked over at Joseph. "Hey, Joseph, check your camera a sec. There seems to be a malfunction." Joseph smirked and smacked his camera against the helicopter and the static seemed to clear away. She smiled at him and nodded. "That's better."

Joseph walked to the front of the chopper and in the pilot's seat, he found the cold, tattered body of Kevin. A pool of blood had formed beneath his seat and Kevin's head was rolled back; his left eye ghastly white while his other seemingly ripped from the socket.

"S-Son of a bitch!" he cried, "Kevin!"

Wesker moved slowly through the forest with his pistol at the ready and his other arm holding a flashlight. Barry had taken one side of the man and Chris the other. They occasionally glanced over their shoulders.

"Captain...do you think they're all right?" Barry whispered, looking at Wesker.

Wesker didn't respond at first and he stared straight ahead. His features seemed to glow under the flashlight. "Let's hope so..." he finally answered.

Jill meanwhile moved slowly and carefully around Bravo Team's chopper, hopeful in finding any evidence of what could have caused the crash. She seemed bothered by the sight of the almost inhuman slashes across Kevin' face.

Finally, the motion detector on her belt flared up with a warning. She gasped and picked it up, catching sight of multiple forms moving in across the tiny screen. And to her horror, they were moving toward one single goal:

Joseph.

_"I got signals! I got readings, in front and behind!"_ she announced, through her head set. _"Joseph, moving in on you, fast!"_

Joseph looked around worriedly through the trees, but he saw no signs of anything. "Where, man? I don't see shit!" he gasped.

Jill's voice shouted through his headset. _"Multiple signals! Closing in fast!"_

Joseph looked around desperately, breathing slowly turning shallow. Something moved behind him, around him and in front of him. A deep, menacing snarling sound filled the air and Joseph jolted where he stood, his shotgun at the ready. He moved toward a bush and pushed some of the vegetation aside. A shape jumped out at him and he yelped out before realizing that the shape was just a small, white rabbit that hopped carelessly away.

Joseph uttered a sigh of relief and even laughed sheepishly at his own fear. "Hey, Jill, I found your target..." he joked, laughing.

Behind him, something charged at the S.T.A.R.S. member and he sensed it a second too late and whirled, just as he saw teeth and claws coming right at him. He squeezed the trigger of his shotgun and the sound reached the other S.T.A.R.S. members. They whirled around and rushed toward the sound.

Joseph screamed in blood-curdling agony as several shapes loomed over him and began to tear into his flesh. They looked like dogs, but their bodies were covered in blood and strips of their own flesh that hung from muscle. Their eyes were white and lifeless, just like Kevin's.

Joseph screamed again as he felt his flesh tearing like paper and his bones snapping like twigs. The world around him became white hot and fogged with pain. He could no longer see anything through a haze of blood that splashed across his face.

Jill was standing several yards away from the gore and massacre, pumping round after round of her handgun into them to try and save her friend, but not a single shell deterred the creatures. They continued to tear into the screaming man until the sounds died down and all that remained was the mix of snarls, ripping flesh and the repetitive clicking of Jill's empty handgun. Much to her horror, one of the dog turned and noticed her standing there.

"Shit!" Jill cursed.

She staggered back slowly as the creature stalked toward her. Just as it leapt at her, an explosion rang out and the monster fell before her, dead with a smoking wound in its stomach. Jill looked stunned and glanced up, noticing Chris standing there with his shotgun in hand. He grabbed her hand and forced her to her feet.

"Let's go! Move!" he shouted.

They turned and ran, just as the other dogs noticed what was happening and howled before they gave chase. The two were racing toward the chopper and Brad watched them with horror, noticing the dogs and slowly, he began to start up the chopper.

"Brad!" Chris shouted, when he realized that Brad was actually going to take off without them, "Brad, you son of a bitch! You little shit! I will fry you for this!"

Brad began to pull up in the chopper, still terrified beyond compare. He could still hear them shouting angrily up at him, but his terror was too strong. Maybe they would take care of it. He would turn around, they would be fine and they could go home.

Yeah, that's it. Th-They'll be fine. They'll be fine.

He was wrong.

_Meanwhile_

Claire slept better last night. She hadn't had a single dream of Wesker or had even heard anything from him in a day, which gave her a sense of relief. She could actually go to the cafeteria of her university without any heavy feeling in her head or any worry.

"Claire!"

Claire turned and noticed one of her classmates rushing up to her with a small box in hand. He offered it to her, breathless and tired. "I've been looking everywhere for you!" he panted, "It came for you this morning, but you were already gone!"

Claire frowned when he pushed the object into her hands. She stared down at the object for a few moments, taking in the details; it looked to have come from the Raccoon City post office because she recognized the Umbrella Logo from the corner of the return address. There was no name, though, so she covered the logo with one hand and moved from the cafeteria and into the bathroom where she could quickly unwrap it to see what it was.

When Claire opened it, she was surprised to find nothing inside save for a bullet; it looked like a 9x19mm Parabellum shell that had the Umbrella logo on the very bottom. It also had strange coloring to it. Instead of bronze, it was capped in silver and striped with red. There was also a small note lying there, unsigned, but it read only the most simplest of sentences in perfect cursive handwriting that looked almost too formal to have been her brother's:

_For when you need to remove an obstacle._

Claire wasn't sure what that meant or why the sender had only given her a single shell and a note, unsigned. Could it have been Wesker? Why would he give her the shell? Was he trying to tell her something in a strange way?

Claire didn't like this. First, he was stern, coarse and a typical officer, then he became sly, seductive in a way and manipulative, and now, he was sending her a shell that may have implied that something was coming her way...

She tucked the bullet into her jacket and discarded the box into the garbage before walking out of the bathroom, concerned. What if this had something to do with her brother and the dangerous mission that he had to go on?

_Chris..._

Claire exited the building and decided to go for a quick drive down the highway on her motorcycle. That would help her get her thoughts together. Whenever Claire was bothered by something, she would take rides on her motorcycle to get her head together. It seemed as good as any day to do so with the clear sky and sun. Claire allowed for the wind to whip her hair and she didn't even mind the occasional insect that would meet her face.

_It's just becoming more and more complicated..._

It was bad enough that she had to keep this a secret from her brother, but it was becoming more unbearable knowing that Wesker knew where she was. He could do whatever he wanted given the chance. But Claire wouldn't let him. There was something off about Wesker to begin with. She didn't catch it at first, but somehow he had shown his true colors these past few days. And it seemed to have come from their little...encounter in the car.

Claire scoffed aloud. Right. Like she could be blamed for that. It was a combination of alcohol and stupidity.

Well, that's never going to happen again.

_Arklay Mansion_

Jill could barely breathe.

She was hiding in the bathroom of the first floor mansion, but she wasn't sure just how long she could wait. Those things...whatever they were; they were not people any more. Something had made them into the shambling, undead husks that they were now.

Jill leaned against the tiled wall and shut her eyes, wiping her forehead of sweat and blood. She took a moment to calm herself and the pang-like heart beat in her chest. While gathering whatever shells she had and counting, Jill had only the highest hopes that Chris and the others were okay.

_Please...let them be okay..._

A banging sound startled her and she jolted from her spot and raised her weapon to the door, where another one of the zombies emerged, groaning wetly, arms outstretched and reaching for her. She squeezed a round directly into its head before it collapsed to the floor in a pile of mush and blood. She quickly hopped over it and moved down the hallways to find the others. Now that she knew that taking them down with a shot to the head would work, it could be easier after all.

_I hope._

O

_Note_- Bah! the review has eluded me! D:


	7. 6

**A Fleeting Moment**

**Disclaimer:** Welcome one and all to my first ever...*NAH-NAH-NAH*...CLAIRE AND WESKER PAIRING! This will be a M only for the violent scenes and language. Maybe some romance if you stick around and review. Hehehe. No, there will be, I promise you that. The title came from listening to Nightwish's song "Nemo". I dunno. After hearing the lyrics and thinking about it, I came up with this pairing for the first time. It is brief and in all honesty, was because I lost the magic for it. I may continue in another part.

_"Not one or two, Subhuti, not one or two, but all the beings - men, women, animals, birds, trees, rocks. All the beings in the world. One should create such a determination that `I will lead all of them into nirvana'."_

-Buddha

_"'Tis strange what a man may do, and a woman yet think him an angel."_

-William Makepeace Thackeray

**By: VampireQueenAkasha**

_"There's no point in hiding."_

-Wesker, Resident Evil 5

**Chapter Six: Snake in the Grass**

_Arklay Mansion_

"I won't tell you again..."

Wesker's voice was roaring like a train through Enrico's ruptured ear drums. Despite having his ribs crushed in from the kicks and his face beaten in, he was sure that Wesker was not finished with him yet. Despite all of it, he was still left wondering why the other Captain was doing this. He had his ideas, but his brain couldn't form any kind of thought right now because of the brutal ringing sensation and the hot roaring through his ears.

"W-Wesker...S-Stop..." Enrico begged, softly, "I would never..."

Wesker's figure blurred in the dim light of the mine's lanterns. He chuckled quietly. "It's a shame, Enrico. I didn't plan this. But they have their orders. S.T.A.R.S. must go down, I'm afraid. You have all come so close to the truth. It has to happen."

Enrico groaned sharply with pain before a sound to the right caught Wesker's attention and the man bolted from his spot, fleeing from a potential enemy. It was Jill. Wesker stayed hidden behind a rock surface and watched as Jill walked forward to Enrico.

"Stop! Are you with anybody, Jill?" Enrico panted, his eyes wandering about worriedly. It seemed that he didn't see Wesker from his hiding spot. Good.

"Enrico, who did this?" Jill asked, surveying the damages to Enrico's body. "Who did this to you?"

Enrico coughed up a bit of blood before he looked weakly up at Jill. She looked so frightened, so terrified that the gaze forced him to look away. "S.T.A.R.S...it's finished..." he rasped, "It...it's done...We've been betrayed...Umbrella set us up and we-"

Suddenly, a gunshot filled the air and Enrico's eyes widened. He felt a sting, followed by a heat that slowly became more and more unbearable. He would have screamed out a warning to Jill had his lungs not filled with his own blood and choked him. He watched her eyes widen in horror and her hands reach out to him before his world slowly blackened.

"Enrico!" Jill shouted, shaking him with two hands, despite the man already dead, "Enrico!"

Wesker smiled and disappeared from view. Now to deal with Chris. The man was being held in a prison cell just below the mansion, so there was no way of getting through to the others in his position. Wesker could use Chris' sudden disappearance to his advantage, of course; the remaining S.T.A.R.S. members had already narrowed down their suspicions to only two individuals: Chris and himself. He would make sure that all eyes were diverted from him.

_Hmm... I wonder how dear Claire is fairing..._

Wesker grunted and mentally kicked himself. Why was he still thinking of her at a time like this? She was Chris Redfield's baby sister for one thing and Wesker couldn't stand Chris with an inch of his life. They had that one moment and he hated himself for that. What had compelled him to do something so impulsive? Wesker had never been so reckless like that before. But Claire had something that he had never known. Something that intrigued him. He did not like that.

So why had he sent her that gift? He was going to use it for his own purposes should he need it, but why had he given it to her?

Wesker's thoughts were interrupted by the sound of raspy moaning. The rattling of chains followed and he knew immediately who it was. That damned Lisa Trevor was after him again. He had dodged her on the way down here, but just barely.

Sure enough, her hulking, shadowy form appeared from around the corner. He recognized the rags around her deformed body and the layers of dead, sick flesh that hung from her head. All of which, of course, were the faces of her victims.

"Lisa..." Wesker hissed, knowing full well that she could understand him, "Leave my sight, otherwise you're going to be in for trouble."

Lisa didn't seem deterred by his words because she tossed her bound arms back and let loose a bellowing, unholy scream. She moved toward Wesker and he grimaced, quickly staggering from her. He had counted on Lisa's deterrence of his threat, but when she decided to go after him again, he knew that he was in for trouble. His ammunition was low and Lisa seemed to be able to take a lot more damage from just a simple hand gun.

Shit! he thought, as she swung her hands and he barely missed the attack, the blow taking a chunk of stone away from the wall.

Lisa bellowed again and moved forward after him. Wesker turned tail and sprinted down the long tunnels, hoping that he could avoid the fallen Trevor woman before someone else could catch on to his scheme and that it was HE who shot Enrico. Jill was a bright bulb indeed, so it was only a matter of time. Dammit. If Barry could have just gotten rid of her like he was told, he wouldn't be running like this down a damp mining tunnel!

Wesker stopped in front of the elevator doors and took a moment to catch his breath and he looked back to see if Lisa was still pursuing him. It didn't seem that she was, so he took a sigh of relief and stepped into the elevator, pressing the appropriate keys. Now he could check on his project. His newest creation. Surely it would give the S.T.A.R.S. a run for their money and more or less, his chance to make a break from Umbrella. After all, he had the appropriate means to do so with William's "cure". They would think him dead and it would give him more leeway to do as he pleased in the darkness, out of Umbrella's watchful eyes.

Wesker smiled to himself. He had it all figured out.

_Meanwhile_

Claire had spent all day working on her studies while still paying mind to the bullet that was sent to her, resting neatly on her desk. She fingered with the tip of it, letting it roll back and forth on her desk in an absentminded gesture.

"Claire, you haven't been able to do any work today."

Claire chuckled and turned in her chair toward her roommate, Donna Burke who had her face buried in a book entitled "Long Division for Dummies". She was a calm, laid back woman which of course, was total contrast to Claire's tomboy, wild nature. Claire actually got along pretty well with the other girl.

"What's his name?" Donna asked, knowingly, as if she had gone through this charade before.

Claire stiffened in her chair. "What are you talking about?"

"Claire, I have a sister who's just as obvious as you are," Donna said, skeptically, "I know when a man is on someone's mind."

Claire smiled slightly and held out two hands. "It's not like that, Donna," she told the other woman, "We were just...confused about each other, so there's nothing going on. It was a mistake. Never happening again."

"Uh-huh..."

Donna didn't sound convinced as she continued to look at her book. Claire frowned at her before staring down at the bullet onto the table. She furrowed her brow and thought hard about it, but something just didn't seem right.

_Arklay Mansion_

Jil struggled to keep Barry in her grip, but he was falling over the edge and he was just so heavy. A part of her, as shameful as it was, wanted to let him go, to let him fall into the chasm below and to his death, but something stopped her. Oh, that's right. She wasn't a murderer nor was she willing to be the traitor. When she stared down into his terrified, sorrowful gaze, she knew that he felt nothing but remorse for what he had tried to do.

"Jill, please, don't let me go...!" he begged.

Jill groaned and she felt her arm almost popping free of its socket, but she applied the strength in her legs and pushed back, pulling Barry onto safe ground. She groaned weakly, catching her breath as he took a moment to catch his wits.

"Were you going to let me die?" he asked, staring at her.

Jill wasn't too sure how to respond, but she did. "I guess not."

Barry stared at her for a few moments more before looking down into the darkness where that...thing had fallen. He watched it just jump off of the edge, after seeing what was inside that stone coffin. What in the hell had made it do that? As he was thinking, he didn't see Jill pick up the fallen photo that he had dropped just as Lisa had smacked him over the edge. He watched a look cross her features and knew just what she was thinking.

"I get it..." Jill said, softly, "You only wanted to protect your family..."

Barry nodded and took the photo from her hands, standing. She stood up with him and they both looked down at the chasm again.

"I have a small hunch that thing survived the fall," he said, turning attention away from his own shame, "Hey, why don't you go on ahead and check the area while I give this place a quick glance-around, okay?"

Jill frowned at him suspiciously. "O-kay..."

Barry chuckled and there was a bit of nervousness there. "What?" he asked. "Come on, Jill. Don't you trust me to do this one thing?"

Jill squinted at him before she turned and walked out of the room, still very uncertain.

Chris groaned and came to, but he really wished that he hadn't.

He was in a prison cell of some kind and he remembered exactly how he got there too. Wesker. That damned bastard brought him here. Chris vaguely remembered a sucker punch and before he knew it, he was unconscious and in the dirt. Although he hadn't woken up until now, he remembered seeing a flash of glasses and the color of a S.T.A.R.S. patch in the moonlit night, so he couldn't deny who it was. The traitor.

Chris groaned and covered his face with two hands, feeling so very stupid because of this. How could he not have known that something was wrong with Wesker? He was always a little odd, suspicious and strange to him. Barry had gotten Chris this job for him because no other asshole would hire him given his military history and problem with superiors. But dammit, Chris should have known all along! He should have trusted his instincts.

"Chris..."

The voice chilled his blood. He looked up and found Wesker standing on the other side of the cell door, staring in at him through the bars. Chris jumped to his feet and surged at the door with a ferocious yell and tried to reach at Wesker through the bars; the man had calmly stepped back, watching Chris violently swipe at him.

"You son of a bitch!" Chris shouted, hysterical, "I'll get out of here and kill you, do you understand! You killed them all! How could you do something like that? They trusted you with their lives, goddamn it! THEY TRUSTED YOU!"

Wesker stared at him from the tops of his glasses, unfazed. His blue eyes flickered with irritation. "Are you finished?"

Chris panted heavily and gripped the bars of the door, glaring out at Wesker with pure rage and hatred that was no where near empty. "No! I am so far from finished, you asshole! SO GODDAMN FAR FROM IT!"

Wesker slapped his hand against the door so suddenly and drew his face close to Chris' that it startled the man a bit. He pursed his lips into a thin line and made a sound that resembled a growl before he calmed and spoke gravely. "Careful what direction you tread in, Chris," he said, severely, "I am keeping you alive right now only for one reason; to see just how well you will fair against my newest creation."

"What creation?" Chris spat. He tugged on the bars of the cell. "How long has Umbrella been slipping you a goddamn paycheck?"

A cold smirk slithered onto Wesker's lips now. "Heh. You seem to be highly mistaken as always, Chris," he told him, "I've always worked for Umbrella from the very beginning. S.T.A.R.S. was made after that fact for you to be used as my little...guinea pigs. The Tyrant virus leaked through the mansion, polluting this whole place into a living dead nightmare from hell...and unfortunately, I had no choice but to give up my precious S.T.A.R.S."

Chris looked horrified at first before he clenched his teeth and snarled. "You bastard!"

Wesker closed his mouth and sighed through his nostrils. "Come now, Chris," he said, as if he had heard this all before, "If you wish to threaten me, do so with some originality." He turned to go. "I don't think you want to die just yet." He chuckled coldly and walked away.

Chris leaned as far as he could against the bars and reached out uselessly with one hand. "Wesker! Come back here! You can't do this! Goddamnit, you can't!"

Wesker's cruel laugh echoed throughout the hallway, leaving Chris to himself with a furious scream in response.

The sound barely reached Jill's ears and she frowned, standing beside the elevator doors. The sound almost resembled laughter, but it was too distant to tell. Oh well, she had other things to worry about than a possibility of that. Just as the doors squeaked open, Barry came running up to her from around the corner. She instinctively drew out her weapon and leveled it at him, thinking that he may have been one of those undead.

Barry held out two hands. "Just me, just me." he assured her.

Jill lowered her weapon and fitted it back into her holster. Barry chuckled softly and gave her a playful punch on the shoulder. "You could've at least waited up for me, ya' know."

Jill nodded her head, but she still seemed doubtfull about having Barry with her. Yeah, everything seemed in the clear and she got some info out of him about why he was doing what he was, but that wasn't enough to satisfy her. Something else bothered the woman as the two stepped into the elevator and it slowly began to descend. They were standing silently together, weapons close at hand. Neither one said anything.

Barry watched her face. "Jill..."

"Don't say anything, Barry," she told him, her voice coming out harder than she wanted, "Just...don't."

His mouth closed with an audible clicking sound and he glanced away. Once the elevator stopped, the two stepped out and could make out the sounds of computers and machines whirring across the hall toward another room. They slowly approached it; Barry trailed behind Jill, watching her with a concerned look mixed with regret, frustration and sadness. She didn't seem to notice it because she was too focused on her destination.

She stopped at the door for a few moments before shoving it open. The room was filled with tubes full of green fluid and computers. She spotted Wesker leaning over a keyboard and typing something quickly. Slowly, Jill started to advance.

"Wesker!" she spat.

Suddenly, she froze when she heard a click and felt cold metal against her cheek. She looked back at Barry, who had his Colt Python aimed right at her. His eyes were filled with the deepest regret and his lips trembling with pain. She stared back at him angrily, furious that he had duped her yet again.

"Thank you, Barry." Wesker said, smiling.

The smile made Jill want to punch him in the face. She continued to glare back at Barry. "Well, well, well, isn't this a shock..."

"Now, now, don't put it all on Barry, Jill," Wesker said, not looking up from his keyboard and the man digital readings on the screen, "His family is in a bit of a tight spot. If he does what I say, perhaps nothing will go wrong with them..."

Jill couldn't believe what she was hearing. "Wesker, how could you do something like this?" she hissed, "You're pathetic."

Wesker paused in his typing for a brief moment. "Well, la-de-da." he said, snidely, "But I wouldn't worry so much about it anyway, Jill. You're going to be set free from this trouble very shortly. Once I take care of this."

Jill scowled at him. "Can I ask one thing though?"

"Ask away..."

"Why would you go through this elaborate scheme of getting rid of all of us?" Jill asked, her features still furious, "Why would you kill the people you've worked with for so long?"

Wesker shrugged his shoulders and spoke with an irritating calm and arrogance. "I know you may not believe this, but it was Umbrella who wanted you dead, not I. It's nothing personal, my dear." He chuckled dryly.

Jill scoffed. "Okay, and I'm supposed to believe that load of crap!" she snapped, "You're just Umbrella's little play thing."

Wesker's hands paused in his typing and he lifted his head slightly. "Heh. What a smart little thing you are, Jill, but don't misunderstand my intentions here. Those sweet little ideas that you have running through your head just mean nothing to me." he snapped his fingers and waved them through the air, indicating to the other S.T.A.R.S. member. "Barry, I want you up on ground level and wait for me, got it?"

Barry nodded and turned, giving Jill a shame-filled grimace before he left. Jill watched him go angrily before she turned back to Wesker, only to be face-to-face with his handgun. He smiled at her, a thin malicious grin.

"Ah, poor, poor Barry. He must be so terrified of Umbrella..." he sneered.

Jill licked her lips with anticipation before she suddenly remembered something. Something important. "Wait!"

Wesker tilted his head with a smirk. "Last words?"

"N-No. Not last words," Jill told him, "I just remembered something. Something to do with you."

Wesker seemed intrigued. He continued to smile. "Go on."

"Claire. Claire Redfield."

The smile vanished. "What about her?"

"What do you mean 'what about her'?" Jill asked. Her voice was quiet now, somewhat shocked. "Don't play that game. I saw the both of you. I saw how she reacted whenever she talked about you. I saw it, Wesker. Don't pretend that it was nothing."

"I'll have to disappoint you, then."

"You felt something for her, I know you did!" Jill insisted, watching an angry grimace touch his lips.

"Tck. Whatever you feel or thought you saw means nothing to me." Wesker sneered, returning his attention to the computer, "I played her like toy, that was all. The Redfield's are certainly quite gullible, aren't they?"

Jill didn't believe that. There was something in his expression, despite not being able to see his eyes. She watched as the protective shell on one of the tubes slid down, revealing a monstrous form floating inside. The flesh was sickly white, covered in scars and ugly mutations. It possessed a massive, clawed arm, proportionally larger than the other. There was a large, pulsating heart beating outside of its chest and ribbons of veins extended from around its face.

Slowly, the water inside the tank began to drain.

Wesker chuckled softly, staring up at the creature with admiration. "The ultimate life form...Tyrant," he sighed, "Isn't it beautiful?"

Jill scowled sourly. "It's disgusting. You've experimented on all of these people, just for the sake of this test-tube freak!"

Wesker slowly turned to her. "You'll never understand," he sneered, aiming his weapon at Jill's head.

Suddenly, a shot rang out and slashed right through the tissue of Wesker's hand. He howled in agony and dropped his weapon to the floor, gripping his bleeding hand with the other. Wesker snarled and looked up at the sight of Barry standing there.

"Barry, you useless pile of waste!" he shouted, "What do you think you're doing?"

Jill seemed relieved to see Barry standing there. "Barry, had a change of heart, huh?"

He lowered his head with shame. "Forgive... me..."

Jill nodded and patted his shoulder gently. "Already done..."

Wesker panted weakly and staggered backwards toward the Tyrant. "You think this is over?" he spat, venomously. He didn't see the Tyrant moving behind him. "Do you think for one second that I can lose to you?"

Jill and Barry's eyes widened and they stared beyond Wesker, horror on their faces. Wesker frowned angrily, confused before he slowly turned toward the Tyrant case. His eyes widened behind his glasses when he realized what was going to happen. The Tyrant plunged its clawed arm completely through the glass and before Wesker could even think of avoiding the attack, the claws pierced completely through his body. His eyes snapped wide in shock and pain; blood gushed from his gaping mouth and splattered across the Tyrant's emotionless face.

Jill and Barry cried out in horror and staggered back, listening to the horrible sounds of Wesker's screams. They were silenced when the Tyrant flung his body aside and stepped out of the tank. It stared down at the immobile form of Wesker before leering toward the other two.

"No!" Jill shouted, "You disgusting freak!"

The Tyrant's teeth gnashed and it began to move toward the two...

_What...What's happening..._

Wesker's body couldn't move, but he felt every layer of his skin burning and the bones about to rupture. His chest felt as if something was crushing it into dust and his head a ten gallon weight. He knew that he must have been dead and William's little experiment a failure, but...he didn't really feel dead. He felt that he was burning, that the very sun itself was scorching down upon him with no end in sight. It was burning him and tearing him apart all at once.

_William, what have you done..._

Wesker felt shapes and shadows dancing across his vision and before he knew it, everything seemed to form into a clear, visual perspective. He could see the crackling computers and even the tiny sparks that danced across ripped wires from claw slashes. Wesker could see dust balls that fluttered uselessly across light fixtures in the ceiling and even smell a heavy trace of blood. When he looked around, he noticed that the Tyrant was gone.

_Hmmm...so they've managed to be rid of it, eh?_

Wesker stared down at his chest and gave himself a quick patting down, noticing the rips and tears where the Tyrant had run him through, but no blood and no damage. He grinned to himself, delighted. Ahh, so William hadn't screwed up after all! He was alive! If he could, Wesker would absolutely kiss the man for his skills.

Just before he could continue to savor the happy moment, he could hear an electronically altered voice blaring out a warning above.

"THREE MINUTES UNTIL DETONATION."

SHIT! Wesker had only three minutes to get out of the mansion and to a safe distance. Wesker turned and sprinted from the room, racing madly down the hallways and toward the elevator that would take him to the garden. He could escape through there. He continued to run, sprinting through several undead without even a second glance or a moment to spare. He hurried into the elevator and quickly pressed a few buttons.

"TWO MINUTES UNTIL DETONATION."

Goddamn it! He had to get out of here. The stupid elevator was taking too damn long!

It finally stopped on the top floor where the stairway of the small Koy pond had been outside the mansion. He fled up the stairway and could still hear the sounds of the computer voice sending out the warning.

"ONE MINUTE UNTIL DETONATION."

Wesker snarled and turned tail, racing into the forest as fast as his legs could carry him. He had to get out of the blast zone and for all he knew, he was still a good bit in it. He could hear the sounds of the computer voice in the distance as it began to count down.

"10...9...8...7..."

Wesker ducked beneath a massive rock surface and braced himself against it, squeezing his eyes shut.

"6...5...4...3...2...1..."

The entire estate shuddered and finally, erupted into an enormous ball of debris and flame. The resulting blast shook Wesker where he was and nearly threw him from his feet. He could still feel the heat of the flame, even at such a distance that he was. He peered carefully over the rock's surface and scowled at the sounds of helicopter blades just over his head. He kept himself hidden as he observed the S.T.A.R.S. chopper passing just over the trees.

They survived, huh? Well, live to fight another day, Chris. Wesker was sure that this wouldn't be the last time he would see him.

He chuckled softly with pleasure and his once blue eyes now burned with gold/red.

_Farewell for now...Chris..._

THE END


End file.
